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GOVERNOR OF LOUISIANA 



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LOUISINA. 



PRODUCTS, 



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A SYNOPSIS OF RELIABLE INFORMATION 
CONCERNING THE STATE. 



BY WM. H. HARRIS, 

STATE COMMISSIONER OF IMMIGRATION, 

(Office, New Orleans, La.) 



SENT FREE ON RECEIPT OF 6 CENTS POSTAGE- 



NEW ORLEANS : 
E. A. Brandao & Co., Printers, 34 Magazine Street. 

1885. 



, I 811 



THE NEW SOUTH. 



t% The Sou tli has the grandest destiny tb,e world ever saw. No 
people have such a future. Hei-soil, her climate, her products, 
her mineral resources, her manufacturing resources, her manu- 
facturing facilities, present a combination of advantages such 
as are found in no other land. The high moral tone of her peo- 
ple, the strength of her Christian faith, the culture of her high- 
est classes, place the South where no other people stand. 

The small buddings on the great oak, prove that it has sur 
vived the winter, and spring is at hand. The survival of the 
misfortunes of the past, is one of the grandest evidences of the 
strength of our civilization, and betokens the coming of a better 
day. Indeed, that day has already dawned. Go where you may, 
over the South, you will see evidences of improvement in every 
department of industry. The fact, that Northern capital is taking 
possession of the railroads of the South, shows that the North 
has faith in the future of the South. Never before, were there 
so many great railroads being constructed in our region. 

The Northern coast of the Gulf of Mexico, is the natural cen- 
ter, of trade for the Western hemisphere. The configuration of 
the' continent, the direction of the great rivers, the sweep of 
the ocean currents, aud the prevailing winds, all point to the 
mouth of the Mississippi as the natural center. There is land 
enough, adapted to the growth of sugar, contiguous to New Or- 
leans to supply the wants of the continent, and to furnish vast 
amounts for exportation. It only needs the proper application 
of machinery and labor, to effect this great result. As to cotton, 
the lowlands along the Mississippi river, can produce ten million 
bales annually. New Orleans is to be the grandest emporium 
of trade for the continent. When'ship communication is made 
across the Isthmus, New Orleans must become the great center 
of trade for North America; and nothing can divert it, but an 
imperial despotism, holding huge investments <of capital else- 
where. 

Take it all in all, the smiling sun never looked upon a better 
country, or a grander people, than we have here in the South." 



LOUISIANA. 



AREA, 43,000 SQUARE MILES. 



GOVERNOR, SAMUEL DOUGLAS McENERY. 



STATE BUREAU OF IMMIGRATION. 

Charles E. Black, Edward J. Gay, 

J. T. Woodward. Wm. H. Harris, Commissioner. 

DESCRIPTION. 

The State is situated in the southwestern part of the United 
States of North America, between the parallels of 28° 50' and 
33° north latitude, and between the meridians 88° 40' and 94° 
10' west from Greenwich. 

It is bounded on the north by Arkansas and Mississippi, on 
parallels 33° and 31°, east by Mississippi, south by the Gulf of 
Mexico, and west by the State of Texas; the Mississippi and 
Pearl rivers forming the boundary line on the east, and the 
Sabine river on the west. 

The Mississippi river winds through the State for a distance 
of 800 miles, and is navigable for 2000 miles to St. Authony 
Falls. It empties into the Gulf of Mexico 105 miles south of 
New Orleans, which is the principal commercial city of the 
South, and the largest cotton martin the world — shipping abouf 
one third the cotton crop of the United States. 

The bar at the mouth of the Mississippi river was a serious 
obstacle to the vast commerce of this port, until the triumph of 
the jetty system opened a channel to the depth of thirty feet. 
The largest ships now pass through without detention up to the 
city of New Orleans, where they both deliver and receive their 
cargoes directly at the wharf. 



LOUISIANA. 



The State is traversed by many other navigable streams, the 
principal of which are the Eed, the Ouachita, Atchafalaya, Ver- 
milion, Calcasieu, Amite, Tchefuncta and Tangipahoa, and 
Bayous Baritaria, Lafourche, Macon, Des Glaizes, and many 
others, giving thousands of miles of natural inland water-way 
for steamboats. The coast-line bordering the Gulf of Mexico is 
1256 miles long, and the Mississippi river and its tributaries 
bear away through Louisiana the products of fourteen great 
States to the commercial centres of the world, among which 
New Orleans holds a commanding position. 

The State contains about (26,000,000) twenty-six million acres 
of land and (1,250,000) one and a quarter million acres of inland 
water surface. 

TOPOGRAPHICAL FEATURES. 

The land is nearly equally divided into hilly and level lands. 

The lands of the State may be approximately divided as fol 
lows: 

Good upland (5,250,000) five and a quarter million acres. 

Pine hills (5,500,000) five and a half million acres. 

Bluff lands (1,500,000) one and a half million acres. 

Prairie (2,500,000) two and a half million acres. 

Arable alluvial (3,500.000) three and a half million acres. 

Wooded alluvial (2,750,000) two and three-quarter million 
acres. 

Pine flats (1,500,000) one and a half million acres. 

Coast marsh (3,500,000) three and a half million acres. 

The alluvial lands border the Mississippi river and other 
streams and bayous. In the spring the river is in many places 
higher than its uatural banks, but is confined to the channel by 
artificial embankments called levees. 

The highlands approach the river only at four points : Tunica, 
Bayou Sara, Port Hudson, and Baton Rouge. Thus the stranger 
traveling by steamboat on the Mississippi river receives the er- 
roneous impression that Louisiana is a low, flat country, and the 
story has gone out to the world with a thousand other mythical 
reports, to misinform the public. The descriptive scenery of 
Louisiana as seen in the average geography or illustrated peri- 



TOPOGRAPMICAL FEATURES. 



odical is a stereotyped burlesque. Her cypress swamps are 
not the deadly morasses they are represented to be, while the 
valuable timber in which they abound is a growing source of 
wealth to the State and the whole country. With half of the 
money spent in draining the low lands in the older Eastern 
States, a large portion of her marsh lands would afford healthy 
and pleasant homes, while their productiveness would be largely 
increased. 

In truth wo part of the Uuited States is more replete with 
varied and beautiful scenery than Louisiana. 

Her sluggish streams are confined to the alluvial lands, which 
represent less than one sixth of her area, while portions of the 
State reach an altitude of five hundred feet above the sea level. 
Here are limpid streams of living water, racing over rocks, 
pebbles and sand, and pouring into the gulf a wealth of power, 
for the manufacturer has not bound them to his wheels. 

The coast-marsh alone is subject to tidal overflow from the 
gulf. More than one-half the alluvial land is protected by levees 
aud the area subject to overflow by the annual rise in the river 
is only about one-ninth of the surface of the State. The arable 
alluvial lands are the richest in the world. Fields cultivated for 
one hundred years without manure are still fertile. There is 
comparatively very little barrern land in the State. In fertility 
the lands succeed the alluviau in the following order: Bluff, 
Prairie, Good Uplands, Pine Hills and Pine Flats. Reclaimed 
coast-marsh is unsurpassed in fertility, yielding as much as 
seventy-five bushels of rice per acre. 

MINERALS. 

Petroleum, coal, sulphur, soda, iron, gypsum, lime, ochre, 
marl and rock-salt are found in tue State, but only the last has 
been developed. 

Avery's Island, near New Iberia, covers a quarry of solid rock- 
salt as white as marble, and containing more than ninety nine 
one-hundredths of sodium chloride, almost absolutely pure salt. 
The mining of this salt is iu successful operation. The extent 
of the deposit is not known, but it is supposed to be inexhaust- 
able. 



6 LOUISIANA. 



There has been only a partial geological survey of the State, 
and its mineral resources are comparatively unknown, and no 
attempt to develop them has been made siuce the war ; but in 
no part of the world does the soil return to the farmer so great 
a variety and abundance of products for a given amount of 
labor. 

AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS. 

The principal agricultural products of the State are cotton, 
sugar, tobacco, corn, oats and potatoes. Rice also is now one of 
the staple crops of the State, and is increasing in acreage each 
year. Other cereals are not generally cultivated for stock, as 
the wild grasses and cane suffice. The fruits which flourish in 
the State are the orange, citron, lemon, shaddock, mespilus, ap- 
ple, pear, peach, plum, grape, strawberry and numerous other 
small fruits and berries; a number of them growing wild and 
without cultivation. All these, including melons and vegetables, 
mature so early as to bring extra prices in the Northern markets, 
where they are shipped by railroad. The forests and streams 
abound in game and fish, from which many hunters and fisher- 
men support their families. 

In the southern part of the State orange culture is both pleas- 
ant and profitable, and is increasing each year. A few acres set 
out in orages will, as soon a they commence bearing, afford a 
competence to the farmer. It is customary for the fruit mer- 
chant to buy the oranges on the tree, and gather them at his 
own expense. 

CLIMATE. 

The climate is never too hot or too cold for field work. Sun- 
stroke is almost unknown, and ice an inch thick is seldom seen. 
' In the extreme south of the State frost is of rare occurrence. 
Notwithstanding the length of the summer the heat is much 
less oppressive than in the Northern and Western States. When 
the newspapers in those sectious contain a daily record of sun- 
strokes, under a temperature of 100° and more, the thermometer 
indicates several degrees lower in New Orleans, and the nights 
are still cooler, affording refreshing sleep. This is in a great 
measure due to the proximity of the gulf, from which southern 
winds prevail during the summer, refreshing the entire State. 



MARKET FACILITIES. 



Notwithstanding a large portion of Western Louisiana is 
prairie, it is singularly free from protracted drouths, wliich 
afflict Kansas and other prairie regions. Consumptives from 
the North find relief in the " piuey woods " of Louisiana. Two 
crops per year can be grown on the same ground, of corn, sor- 
ghum, rice and jute, and three cuttings of tobacco. Vegetables 
can be grown every month in theyear. Cattle, sheep and horses 
are raised in the State with little trouble or expense, and no 
feeding ; the only outlay being for salt. Little attention has 
been paid to improved breeds. It is not considered necessary 
to ieed stock at any time in this State, except horses and mules 
when at work — the summer range of wild grasses" is excellent 
and sufficient. When winter comes on, horses, mules, cattle, 
sheep and hogs find a living in the woods and cane-brakes, 
without shelter, and grown animals come out in February fat 
and sleek. 

CHURCHES AND SCHOOLS. 

There are schools of different denominations in every parish 
in the State; also a good system of public schools maintained 
by a special tax levied for that purpose. The negroes have 
equal educational advantages with the whites, but in separate 
schools. 

There are fifty-eight parishes in the State, all of which have 
railroad or water communication with commercial centres. 

MARKET FACILITIES. 

The products of the State are generally marketed at New 
Orleans, but can be readily sold at the nearest town or village. 

EXPORTS. 

The principal exports of the State are cotton, sugar, rice, to- 
bacco, cotton seed oil-cake and meal, lumber, staves, hides, moss, 
vegetables and fruits. 

THE CANNING- INDUSTRY. 

The canning of fruits and vegetables is an industry scarcely 
attempted in the State, yet nowhere in the United States are of- 
fered such variety and perennial abundance. The canning of 
the gulf shrimp is attracting attention, and the. business is in- 



LOUISIANA. 



creasing. The extensive oyster-beds along the southern coast 
and bayous iuvite enterprise. The size and flavor of these oys- 
ters are unsurpassed. Some of them are so large that they are 
not merchantable to the saloon keepers, who buy by the barrel 
and sell by the dozen. 

IMPORTS. 

The chief imports are coffee, mahogany, Spanish cedar, dry 
goods, hardware, crockery, machinery, malt liquors, wine and 
spirits. 

FACTORIES. 
The principal factories in the State are sugar mills and refin- 
eries, cotton gins and factories, cotton seed oil mills, saw mills, 
foundries and machine shops, tobacco and moss factories. There 
is only one jute factory in New Orleans. There is ample room 
and great demand for more extensive factories of all kinds. 
Kailroad building is active and extensive in the State, and the 
demand for labor in their construction is great. 

WATER-POWER. 

Louisiana has some of the finest mill-streams in the world, 
which never freeze. These streams are bordered with fields of 
the finest cotton which is shipped as " Orleans." Vegetables 
and grass, for man and beast, remain green all the year — health 
is good, tood is cheap, clothing light and less thau half the cost 
of that necessary at the North, fire- wood costs nothing; surely 
the factory should come to the cotton field, and save the expenses 
of commissions, haulings, handlings, transportations, insurances, 
compressing, weighing and re-weighing, shrinkages, and many 
others, all of which combined amount to a margin which would 
be a clear profit over that of the Northern or European manu- 
facturer of 15 per cent, on the value of the cotton. 

SPANISH MOSS. 

The woods yield an annual crop of Spanish Moss, the gather- 
ing of which affords profitable employment to men, women and 
children, and thousands of bales are annually shipped North 
and West to furniture and mattress factories. The moss indus- 
try affords a promising field for the investment of capital in the 
State. 



PUBLIC LAXD& 



PAPER MANUFACTURE. 

The clear waters of inauy streams near New Orleans are pro- 
nounced by experts to be unsurpassed for paper manufacture. 
There are many other clear water streams affording ample power, 
which permeate the whole State. 

Besides jute, which springs up like " an evil weed,'' the soil 01 
the State grows a hundred other fibrous plants, most of them 
indigenous, and many suited for the manufacture of cordage, 
textile fabrics, and paper. 

PUBLIC LANDS. 

There are about (2,000,000) two million acres of United States 
lands in the State, subject to entry under the Homestead Act 
and Timber Culture Act. These lauds are scattered over the 
entire State, but most of them are to be found in the prairies, 
good uplands, pine hills, or pine flats. The State owns all the 
swamp lands within her borders, amounting to about 6,000,000 
acres. 

Most of these State lands are low and not suitable for building 
sites, but they are unsurpassed in fertility. In the prairie re- 
gion they are covered with a fine sod of perennial grass, and lie 
contiguous to the high lauds which belong to the United States. 
In the wooded section they are covered with pecan, cypress, oak, 
pine, hickory, gum, ash and other timber. 

THE PRICE OF LANDS. 
Immigrants can buy land in nearly every parish in the State 
in quantities to suit them. Unimproved lands in the State are 
worth from twenty-five cents to ten dollars; improved lands 
sell from two dollars per acre to fifty dollars, according to loca- 
tion and improvemennts. Bargains are offered in lands all over 
the State; many sugar and cotton plantations have sold for one- 
fourth the cost of the improvements. The lands are just as 
good as ever, but the shrinkage in value is due to the scarcity 
of labor. 

THE ABOLITION OF SLAVERY. 

The slaves were freed more than twenty years ago. During 
the existence of slavery the tendency of the Southern mind was 
toward an aristocracy, and immigration was not wanted. 



10 .. LOTIISIANA. 



The institution fostered a system of large plantations worked 
by slaves, discouraged the white laborer, and lowered his social 
position. Thus it was that the finest of the alluvial lands were 
then taken up, leveed and reclaimed by planters owning large 
numbers of slaves who could do the heavy w.rk. The pinu 
hills, flats and prairies were left to the yeomanry who came into 
the country. Those pioneers who settled the pine hills "pitched 
their tents" in the thousand creek bottoms which divide the 
hills, and with their own hands worked their way to wealth — 
their sons and daughters learned to work, and when they mar- 
ried entered lands either " up" or "down the creek." Many of 
them accumulated gradually the comforts of home, until a com- 
petency was reached. To day these farmers are in a more fa- 
vorable position than many of the original owners of the alluvial 
places, who failed under the new system of free labor. In many 
instances these plantations have changed hands and are success- 
ful. Some of the best sugar planters in the State are from the 
North, and many of the former overseers of the slaves are the 
owners of the plantations, and the sous of ihe former owners 
have in turn become overseers. 

Our people are becoming "Yankeeized ;" our sons and daught- 
ers are brought up to depend upon self, to work and to place a 
value upon the wages of work of every kind. The dignity of 
labor is asserted and admitted by all. The children of our old- 
est and best families do manual labor in field or shop, and do 
not lose caste. 

FREE LOUISIANA. 

There is no State in the Union where the relations between 
labor and capital are more harmonious than in Louisiana, and 
it may be said that there is no country in the world where un- 
skilled labor is paid so well. The slave being free, the planter 
no longer fears the advent of a more intelligent laborer or farmer. 
Formerly he was regarded as a firebrand whose contact would 
inflame the passions of the slaves. Now he is welcomed by all 
classes. In many localities in the highlands, where the negroes 
have deserted the cotton plantations and flocked to the sugar 
plantations on the river, the lands have been " turned out," and 



LANDS GIVEN AW AY. 11 

labor is scarce; the owners realizing that taxes will in time 
"eat up" unproductive capital, offer every inducement to immi- 
grants. 

LANDS GIVEN AWAY. 

In some instances they will give away to actual settlers forty 
acres of good land, and perfect the title after two years of set- 
tlement and cultivation of ten or fifteen acres. These lands are 
held at from two to ten dollars per acre, and in some instances 
will make, with good cultivation, a bale of cotton to the acre. 

HEALTH. 

The health of this State will compare favorably with that of 
any section of the United States. Yellow fever is seldom known 
outside of lew Orleans, and notwithstanding the bad repu- 
tation which that much abused city has abroad, and the period- 
ical epidemics to which she has been subject at intervals in the 
past, insurance statistics will show that her average death rate 
is lower than that of many northern cities. 

During the past seven years, there has been no yellow fever 
in the city, and it is believed that, with judicious quarantine 
regulations and intelligent sanitation, future epidemics will be 
avoided. 

DEMAND FOR LABOR. 

There is a continued and increasing demand for agricultural 
labor in the State. In making the crop, seventy -five cents per 
day is paid in addition to rations of pork, meal and flour, a 
house and garden and fuel, all of which are furnished without 
charge. In harvesting the cotton, rice and sugar crops in the 
fall and winter, the labor is pleasant and wages about double. 

THE WESTERN WHEAT HARVESTERS. 

The rice harvest, which commences in August, and the sugar 
making, which usually commences in October, furnish an ex- 
cellent opportunity to the harvesters of the West, after the 
grain has been threshed, to visit Louisiana, and continue their 
harvest work for one hundred and fifty days or more. It is 
probable that the railroads would gr^nt excursion rates for this 
purpose. ; 



12 LOUISIANA. 



THE TENANT SYSTEM 

In making cotton, the tenant system is general. The planter 
furnishing land, mule, feed, implements and everything neces- 
sary to make the crop and prepare it for market, and receiving 
one-half the crop, or one-fourth the crop where he only fur- 
nishes the land. With sugar planters monthly wages are 
generally paid, although some adopt the tenant system with a 
central mill. Under this system, the land is leased to the tenant 

and his cane bought at a fair price. 

i 
THE TOPOGRAPHY AND SOILS OF LOUISIANA. ' 

The traveler in the Great West must be impressed with the 
uniformity of the landscape. Almost as flat as Holland, the 
vast prairie seems as endless as sea or sky, and the eye of the 
immigrant is delighted with the luxuriant crops which indicate 
a rich soil. He forgets that all this beauty is located at a long 
distance from the great distributing ceutres of trade, and that 
transportation over long lines of roads must be paid for before 
it reaches a market. 

But in Louisiana nature has kindly furnished water ways to 
market through the numerous rivers and bayous which form a 
net work all over the State and intersect each parish. 

With the great Mississippi and its tributaries running the 
whole length of the State and the Gulf of Mexico forming the 
southern boundary, our people can never be subject to imposi- 
tion from the monopoly of transportation companies. 

THE ALLUVIAL PARISHES 

are East Carroll, Madison, Tensas, Concordia, Avoyelles, Pointe 
Coupee, West Baton Rouge, Iberville, Ascension, Assumption, 
St. James, St. John and St. Charles. Mauy other parishes in 
the State contain alluvial lands in their borders, together with 
other formation. These are the richest lands in the world, and 
of unknown depth. Fields cultivated for one hundred years 
without manure are still fertile. This division of lands is gen- 
erally occupied by large planters, who hire laborers by the year 
to make their crops of sugar, cotton and rice. 



CENTRAL FACTORY SYSTEM. 13 



Most of the cotton planters adopt the tenant system. The 
laborer has no expense except his own provisions, and receives 
one-half the crop as soon as ginned, and disposes of it to anyone 
and in any manner he may prefer. 

THE CENTRAL FACTORY SYSTEM 

is growing in popularity with the sugar planters. In this sys- 
tem the planter leases his lands to the small farmers and buys 
their cane delivered at the mill for a stipulated price. Intelli- 
gent white farmers have succeeded admirably on this plan, and 
the planters are now introducing white tenants from the West 
and Europe. The largest population of negroes is confined to 
the alluvial districts. The older negroes are docile, tractible 
and good laborers, but the younger generation, which has grown 
up since the war, is not so reliable. 

The alluvial lands are of unsurpassed fertility and although 
some portions are occasionally overflowed, they quickly dry 
upon the subsidence of the streams. To this is due the fact 
that ague and chills and fever are so seldom known to the 
planter of either large or more limited areas. These alluvial 
lands are a source of continual wealth, as no amount of crop- 
ping has ever yet diminished their fertility. 

THE BLUFF LANDS, 

west of the Mississippi river, are located in Avoyelles, West 
Carroll, Catahoula, Richland, Franklin, Rapides, St. Landry, and 
Lafayette, and five small islands that stand up in bold relief from 
the sea-marsh. Those east of the Mississippi are found in Living- 
ston, East and West Feliciana and East Baton Rouge. These 
lands are elevated plains, intersected by precipitous ravines and 
deep gullies, and are very fertile. The soil is a fine calcareo- 
silicious silt, and ranks next in fertility to the alluvial. They are 
easily tilled, and retain manure well. Under high cultivation they 
rival the wonderful productions of the alluvial lands. The 
natural forest growth of the bluff lands is very large and beau- 
tiful, consisting principally of magnolia, beech, poplar, holly 
and the varieties of oak, intertwined with grape, muscadine and 
hundreds of flowering vines, the most fragrant of which is the 



14 LOUISIANA. 



yellow jesamine. The virgin soil is covered with dense switch 
cane, affording abundant winter food for all kinds of stock, and 
numerous clear streams of water in this fair region, making it 
indeed the farmers' paradise. 

PRODUCTS. 

All the products of the State flourish on the bluff lands. 

THE GOOD UPLANDS 

are found in the parishes of Caddo, DeSoto, Sabine, Bossier, 
Webster, Red River, Claiborne, Bienville, Union, Jackson, 
Ouachita, Morehouse and parts of Caldwell, Bast Baton Rouge 
and East and West Feliciana. These lands are from three to 
five hundred feet above the level of the sea. The soil is gray or 
yellow sandy loam, and very fertile. It is easily washed, unless 
cultivated by horizontal plowing. The sub-soil is a sandy clay, 
and retains fertilizers well. 

THE RED LANDS 

of Claiborne, Sabine, Union, Jackson and Webster parishes, 
come under this head. These lands are on high ridges, but 
more tenacious and not easily washed. They are very fine cot- 
ton and corn lands, but are especially adapted to small grain. 
The natural forest growth of these lands are oaks of different 
varieties, dogwood, beech, sassafras, gum, ash, maple, short- 
leaf pine, and many bushes and grapevines. The parishes 
named under this head, all have alluvial lands bordering the 
streams which intersect them, but these are not extensive in 
Bienville, Claiborne, Jackson and Sabine. The lands lying on 
the Red River, in the parishes of Bossier, Caddo, DeSoto and 
Red River, and those lying on the Ouachita in the parishes of 
Caldwell, Morehouse and Ouachita are said to be the finest cot- 
ton lands in the world. There are also large tracts of long-leaf 
pine-lands in Bienville, Caldwell, Jackson, Ouachita and Sabine, 
which are inferior in fertility. 

THE PRODUCTS 

of the good uplands are cotton, corn, rice, potatoes, tobacco, 
oats, wheat and sugar for home consumption. Small grains do 
well, especially ia the famous "red lands.'' Peaches, plums, 



THE GREAT PRAIRIE REGION 15 

pears, apples, melons and grapes flourish. In Claiborne there 
are many tine vineyards, and wine of a superior quality is made. 
The good uplands, with ordinary cultivation, will produce 
three-fourths of a bale of cotton, twenty-five to thirty bushels 
of corn, thirty-five to forty-five bushels of rice, two hundred to 
three hundred bushels of potatoes, or three-fourths of a hogshead 
of sugar. With fertilizers and good cultivation these figures 
may be doubled. 



THE GREAT PRAIRIE REGION. 

Professor S. H. Lockett, says: "This, to me at least, is the 
most pleasing part of the State — the great prairies. They lie 
almost entirely west of Bayou Teche and south of Bayou Coco- 
drie, making up the old Opelousas and Attakapas countries. 
On the south they are limited by the impassable sea marsh, into 
which they pass, often by imperceptible gradation. On the 
west, Calcasieu river and the Sabine form the boundary lines." 

BAYOUS, COULEES AND FORESTS. 

All of this extensive area, thus broadly defined, is not one un- 
broken, treeless expanse Coulees and bayous course through it, 
generally in a north and South direction, on the borders of 
which grow fine forests of timber. From these principal belts 
of timber spurs run out into the open prairies like headlands 
into the sea, thus dividing the whole region into separate tracts, 
each having its own name, Faquetyke, Mamou, Calcasieu, Sa- 
bine, Vermilion, Mermentau, Plaquemine, Opelousas and Grand 
Prairie are the largest. There are many others with local names. 

The surface ot the prairies, though generally level, is yet per- 
fectly so. 

PRAIRIE BILLOWS, COVES AND HARBORS. 

The prairie is gently rolling, like the billows of a deep sea. 
In fact, one cannot ride through the prairies without having 
their striking resemblace to large bodies of water constantly re- 
curring to his mind. The grass which grows upon their surface, 
waving in the wind, looks like ripples upon the bosom of the 
ocean; the dark blue borders of the woods are like distant 



16 LOUISIANA. 



shores; the projecting spurs like capes and promontories; the 
"coves" like bays and gulfs, and the occasional clumps of de- 
tached trees like islands in the sea. 

SOIL OF THE PRAIRIES. ^ 

The soil of the prairies is either of a grayish -yellow, or a cold 
gray color, but is much better than is generally supposed, and 
improves wonderfully under proper cultivation. The sub-soil is 
a good tenacious clay. The eastern part of the prairies has a 
better soil than that farther west. Yet even the latter amply 
repays the laborer for his toil. By manuring, tramping, draining 
and deep plowing, the prairie soil gets better every year it is cul- 
tivated. Cotton, cane and rice may be raised with profit, and 
an excellent quality of tobacco. Hay, in any desired quantity, 
can be made by enclosing parts of the prairie and mowing the 
grass when fresh and juicy, or by sowing cultivated grasses. 

PRODUCTS OF THE PRAIRIES. 

The chief products of the prairies now are beef cattle, horses 
and sheep. Poultry of all kinds are raised with the greatest 
ease ; vegetables and melons, figs, peaches and fine strawberries 
are grown successfully. 

POPULATION OF THE PRAIRIES. 

Most of the population of the prairies is of Acadian origin. 
Their horses and cattle run at all times on the prairie. With 
thousands of cows roaming on the prairies, you seldom see but- 
ter or milk in their houses. With the means around them of 
living well, they fare no better than the people who live on poor 
lands. 

CLIMATE OF THE PRAIRIES — HEALTH AND LONGEVITY. 

The climate of the prairies is admirable; breezy and cool in 
the summer, mild in the winter, dry and healthy at all times ; 
the Creole inhabitants are proverbially long-lived. Altogether, 
this region may be regarded as naturally the loveliest part of 
Louisiana. 

[Chicago Tribune.] 

"If, by some supreme effort of nature, Western Louisiana, with its 
soil, climate and productions, could lie taken up and transported North, 
to the latitude of llliuoia and lndiaua, aud be there set down iu the 



CLIMATE. 17 

pathway of Eastern and Western travel, it would create a commotion 
that would throw the discovery of gold in California in the shade at 
the time of the greatest excitement. The people would rush to it in 
countless thousands. Every man would be intent on scouring a few 
acres of these wonderfully productive and profitable sugar plains. 
These Teche lands, if in Illinois, would bring from three to five hun- 
dred dollars per acre." 

Prof. B. W. Hilg-ard, of the University of California, says : 

" Few sections of the United States, indeed, can offer such induce- 
ments to settlers as the prairie region between the Mississippi bottoms, 
the Nez Pique and I Mermen tau. Healthier by far than the prairies of 
the Northwest, funned by the sea breeze, well watered, the scarcity of 
wood rendered of less moment by the blandness of the climate, and 
the extraordinary rapidity with which natural hedges can be grown for 
fences, while the exuberantly fertile soil produces both sugar cane aud 
cotton in prolusion, continuing to do so in many cases after seventy 
years exhaustive culture— well may the Teche country be styled by its 
enthusiastic inhabitants, the 'Garden of Louisiana.'" 

[Darby's History of Louisiana — 1817.1 

"This vast expanse of natural meadow extends seventy-five miles 
southwest and northeast, and is twenty five miles wide, containing 
more than 1,200,000 acres, exclusive of the numerous points of woods 
that fringe its margin on all sides. This prairie being thirteen miles 
northwest of Opelousas and gradually opening to the southward, sends- 
out various branches between the bayous. 

"Here you behold those vast herds of cattle which afford subsistence 
to the natives and the inhabitants of New Orleans. It is certainly one 
of the most agreeable views in nature to behold from a point of eleva- 
tion thousands of cattle and horses of all sizes scattered over the 
intermediate mead in wild confusion. The mind feels a glow of cor- 
responding innocent enjoyment with those useful and inoffensive ani- 
mals grazing in a sea of plenty. If the active horsemen that guard us 
would keep their distance, fancy would transport them backwards into 
the pastoral ages. Allowing an animal to be produced for every five 
acres, more than two hundred and twenty thousand can yearly be 
reared and transported from this prairie alone, which, at an average of 
ten dollars per head, would amount to two million four hundred thou- 
sand dollars." 

Tlie following is an analysis, by Prof. Eug-ene W. Hilgatcd, 
of the University of California, of a specimen of virgin Louis- 
iana prairie soil : 

"Depth ten inches, without change of color; below this depth it be- 
comes more grayish, with an increasing amount of rounded, chiefly 
ferruginous concretions (or black pebble) ; gray loam at two to three 
feet ; vegetation — grasses, mainly Fankum sp., and Andfojppgon, (broom 
sedge), with Yemonia (iron weed). 

"Color, deep black; soil quite heavy; not as much so as the prairie 
soils of Mississippi and Alabama, but does not crumble on drying like 
the lattet. 

"Saturated with moisture 12.8 degrees centrigrade, it lost 10.-6 per 
cent, on drying at 204°. Dried at this temperature it consisted of: 



18 LOUISIANA. 



Insoluble matter 67.21 ) 77-17 

Soluble Silica 9.96$ ,tmU 

Potash 0.21 

Soda 0.17 

Lime 1.74 

Magnesia 1 .48 

Br. oxide of manganese 0.27 

Peroxide of iron 2.78 

Alumina 4.83 

Phosphoric acid 0.21 

Sulphuric acid 0.11 

Carbonic acid 2.06 

Water and organic matter 8 . 60 

99.63 
SEA-MARSH. 

A large part of the parishes of Cameron, Vermilion, St. 
Mary, Terrebonne, Lafourche, Jefferson, Plaquemines, Iberia 
and St. Bernard is composed of sea-marsh ; but the land bor- 
dering the bayous is the richest alluvial. The products are 
sugar, rice, vegetables, tropical fruits and fish and game. A 
part of the surface of Vermilion, Cameron and Iberia parishes, 
is prairie. Sugar planters occupy the bayou lands, while 
hunters and fishermen are sparsely scattered through the marsh 
and many of the cheniers are covered with orange trees and 
live oaks. 

THE PINE FLATS 

cover nearly one half of the parishes of St. Tammany, Tangi- 
pahoa, Livingston and Calcasieu. The forest growth is mag- 
nificent long leal pine — the yellow pitch pine of commerce 5 and 
a fine growth of cypress timber borders the streams. The pine 
flats afford illimitable fields to the lumberman, and charcoal 
burners do a flourishing trade with New Orleans, where they 
ship charcoal on luggers and receive from twenty-five to fifty 
cents per barrel therefor. The manufacture of tar, pitch and 
turpentine is carried on only to a limited exteut, and all of these 
industries offer large and speedy returns to the investment of 
capital. 

The soil of the pine flats is thin and sandy ; in comparison 
with the soil of other parts of the State, it is called poor, yet it 
will yield a fair return tor labor bestowed. This -region has 
little undergrowth, but is covered with coarse grass, which 
affords good pasturage for sheep and cattle. 

The products are sugar cane, corn, potatoes, rice, tobacco, 
vegetables, melons, fruits and grapes. 



THE PINE HILLS. 19 



THE PINE HILLS 

are found in Catahoula, Calcasieu, Grant, Livingston, Natchi- 
toches, Rapides, St. Helena, St. Tammany, Tangipahoa, Veruou 
and Washington. All of these parishes have a great variety 
of soil, and distinctive forest growth peculiar to each within 
their borders. Natchitoches has thousands of acres of alluvial 
lands equal to the best in the State. Catahoula has bluff lauds 
on Sicily Island, and alluvial on the Black and Ouachita rivers. 

Grant has alluvial lands on Bayous Rapides, Robert and 
Bceuf. Washington and St. Tammany parishes, on Pearl river, 
and a large part of Calcasieu parish is prairie. The lauds bor- 
dering the small streams in the pine woods are dotted with 
settlements of white families, who are frugal and industrious, 
and do all their own work without employing "help." The 
streams are of clear pure water, abound in fish, and afford 
ample power for mills. The great wealth of this section is com- 
prised in its endless forest of pines, which offer inducements to 
manufacturers, who would put them iu the various merchant- 
able forms of lumber, tar, pitch and turpentine. Like the pine 
flats, the soil is thin, but supports a hardy, independent and 
healthy people, who cultivate cotton, corn, potatoes, rice, to- 
bacco, vegetables, fruits and sugar cane for home consumption. 
Large numbers of native cattle subsist upon the wild grasses 
without other food. 

The following is an analysis of long-leaf pine land : Depth 

of soil, nine inches ; growth, besides pine, post, Spanish and red 

oak ; color, yellowish-buff ; soil saturated with moisture at 

60.1° Fahr. lost 4.100 per cent, of water at 400°. Sub soil 9 to 

20 inches — an orange-yellow sandy loam; 10.0 per cent, of 

water at 400°, dried at temperature, soil and sub soil consisted of: 

Soil. Sub-soil. 

Insoluble matter (chiefly flue matter) 89.801 77.931 

Potash 0.218 0.266 

Soda 0.076 0.072 

Lime 0.034 0.152 

3Iiignesia 0.806 0.352 

Brown oxide of Manganese 0.072 , 0.91 

Peroxide of iron 2.402 ' 5.456 

Alumina 3.783 IJ.^70 

Phosphoric acid 0.036 0.043 

Sulphuric acid 0.038 0.035 

Organic matter and water 3.446 3.261 



20 LOUISIANA. 



The following analysis of pine-land soil and sub-soil, shows 

the ingredients of the better qualities of these lands : Depth, 5 

inches, sub-soil, 11 to 18 inches. 

Insoluble matter (chiefly sand) 93.257 83.030 

Potash 0.259 0.485 

Soda 0.0G5 0.0G1 

Lime 0.129 0.073 

Magnesia 0. 180 0.519 

Brown oxide of Manganese . 1 46 1 . 153 

Peroxide of iron 1 . 25 1 4 . 145 

Alumina 2.35(5 . 8.871 

Phosphoric acid 0.030 0.022 

Sulphuric acid 0.024 0.021 

Organic matter aud water 2 . 380 3 . 117 

YELLOW PINE TIMBER. 

Amount standing in Southern States. 

Long Leaf, Short Leaf, T , „ 
Feet. Feet lotai *eer. 

Louisiana 26,588,000,000 21,625,000.000 48,203.000,000 

Texas 20,508.000,000 26,093,200,000 46,601,200,000 

Alabama 18,885,000,000 18,885,000,000 

Mississippi 17,200,000,000 6,775,006,000 23,975^000,000 

Georgia 16,778,000,000 16,778,000,000 

Florida 6,615,000,000 6,015,000,000 

South Carolina 5,316,000,000 5,310,000,000 

North Carolina 5,229,000,000 5,229,000,000 

Arkansas 41 ,315,000,000 41,315,000,000 

FARMING IN LOUISIANA. 

While it is true that the large planters of Louisiana are en- 
gaged almost exclusively in the growing of sugar, cotton, rice 
and forage necessary for their work animals, these princely es- 
tablishments are confined to the alluvial region, and the farmers 
in the uplands, prairie and pine-woods, take advantage of the 
native pastures, nuts, fruits and roots, ami raise cattle, sheep, 
hogs and a few horses and mules, in addition to field crops. 

This is especially the case in Southwestern Louisiana, which 
is prairie, and does not materially differ from the prairies of 
Texas, except that they are of less extent and better watered 
with Streams bordered with timber, and the rain-fall is ample 
and reliable throughout the year. These lands will compare fa- 
vorably with any of the prairie lands of the United States, and 
the Colorado beetle or grasshopper, the plague of other prairies, 
has never been seen in our State. 



FARMING IN LOUISIANA. 21 

The cereals, root crops, fruits and vegetables are cultivated 
as iu the West, North or England, but mature with much less 
care or labor. 

Corn and sugar cane are cultivated only with the plow or cul- 
tivator, in rows from four to seven feet apart. They should be 
plowed three times, although good corn is made by once plowing 
out in rich land. Corn should be planted from the fourteenth of 
February to the first of March. Sugar-cane either in the fall or 
spring. It requires only one planting iu three years. Cotton is 
also planted in rows, from the twentieth of March to the first of 
May. Cotton should be thinned to a stand by one hoeing, and 
plowed about three times. The lands of Louisiana will yield 
from twenty-five to fifty bushels of corn, from one to two bales 
of cotton, and from one to three hogsheads of sugar per acre. 

Rice is very extensively cultivated in the State and will yield 
from thirty to seventy-five bushels per acre, worth from 845 to 
$115. In the lowlands rice is sown broadcast and irrigated ; in 
the highlands, it is drilled in rows two or three feet apart, and 
cultivated with a plow or cultivator. It may be cut by machinery 
and threshed like wheat. 

Oats do well all over the State. Wheat is confined to North- 
western Louisiana. Sugar cane is very easily grown, but the 
cost of machinery is great, and it requires a large capital to 
build and operate a mill. 

Small farmers sell their cane to the central mills for four or 
'five dollars per ton (2000 pounds) ; twenty tons is a fair crop 
per acre, but over thirty tons are sometimes made. Sugar - 
inaking commences about the middle of October and continues 
about three months. Hands are generally paid $1.50 per day 
during sugar-making. 

The rice harvest is in August, and wages are $1.50 a day. 

Cotton picking commences in August and lasts till January. 
It is light, clean work, and women and children pick as well as 
men. All enjoy this season, and there is a demand for every 
pair of old or young hands. The price paid for picking is gen- 
erally one cent a pound. A quick hand will pick more than 200 
pounds per day. 



22 LOUISIANA. 



The finest tobacco is raised in Louisiana 5 it is called perique 
tobacco, and sells readily for one dollar per pound. Three cut- 
tings can be made a year, giving an enormous yield. 

While Louisiana grows all the crops of the Northern and 
Western States and England, her staples are cotton, sugar, rice 
and tobacco, which will always command gold in any market 
of the world. 

The cultivation of India jute has also been successfully com- 
menced, the yield being 4000 pounds of fibre per acre, pro- 
nounced by experts superior to the imported article. There are 
vacant lands enough in the State to supply the demand of the 
world. Crops in this State are generally laid by in June. 

The mild climate in Louisiana enables the gardeners of this State 
to send vegetables to St. Louis, Chicago, Cincinnati and New 
York, eight weeks in advance of their own gardens. We some- 
times have strawberries in December and lasting till May. Or- 
anges ripen in October and last all winter. Japan plums ripen 
from December till March. 

Our early vegetables command fabulous prices in the 
West. A market gardener near New Orleans showed me his 
sales of cucumbers at twenty dollars per barrel and potatoes at 
eight dollars. 

To sum up the advantages of Louisiana as a farming country : 

The land is as rich as any in the world. 

The agricultural products are more numerous. 

The health is good, water plentiful and good, timber first-class, 
climate unsurpassed, grass abundant for stock all the yearj 
water transportation from all parts of the State to New Orleans, 
the greatest cotton and sugar market in America; railroads 
throughout the State competiug with cheap river transporta- 
tion. 

The people are kind, hospitable and welcome immigration 
from every quarter of the globe. 

There has never been a failure of the crops from any cause 
whatever. 

According to the census of 1880, one man of every fifteen in- 
habitants is a foreigner. 



11') I s 1 FOR IMMIGRANTS. 23 



HOMES FOii IMMIGRANTS. 

This book is not issued in the interest of any individual, land 
or railroad company having lands for sale, but by the authority 
of the State of Louisiana. Its object is to induce immigrants to 
settle on the public lands and become citizens of the State. 

THE UNITED STATES HOMESTEAD ACT. 

Under this law every citizen and every foreigner who has de- 
clared his intention to become a citizen of the United States is 
entitled to enter, at the United States land office in New Orleans, 
100 acres of land, by paying a fee of eighteen dollars and sev- 
enty cents ; of this amount fourteen dollars must be paid cash 
and the balance in live years. 

THE UNITED STATES TIMBER CULTURE ACT. 

Under this law, every citizen or foreiguer who has declared 
his intention to become a citizen of the United States, is en- 
titled to enter 160 acres of prairie land at the United States 
land office at New Orleans, by paying a fee of eighteen dollars 
and seventy cents; of this amount, fourteen dollars must be 
paid in cash, and the balance at the end of eight years. 

This act is liberal in its provisions, but a strict compliance 
with the letter and spirit of its terms will be required on the part 
of claimants thereunder. One hundred and sixty acres is the 
maximum entry, and when that quantity is taken at least five 
acres must be plowed within one year from date of entry. The 
following or second year said five acres must be actually cul- 
tivated to crop, and a second five acres plowed. The third year 
the first five acres must be planted in timber, seeds or cuttings, 
and the second five acres actually cultivated to crop. The 
fourth year the second five acres must be planted in timber, 
seeds or cuttings, making at the end of the fourth year, ten 
acres thus planted. Perfect good faith must be shown at all 
times by claimants. The timber must not only be planted, but 
it must each year be protected and cultivated in such a manner 
as to promote its growth. A patent may be obtained for the 
land at the expiration of eight years from the date of entry, 
upon showing that for said eight years the trees have been 



24 LOUISIANA. 



planted, protected, and cultivated as aforesaid, and that not less 
than 2700 trees were planted on each acre, and at the time of 
making proof there shall be then growing at least 075 living 
thrifty trees to each acre. If at any time daring the said eight 
years, it shall be shown that the party has failed to comply 
with the terms of the law, the entry will be canceled. Under 
this law, good faith will require that if the trees, seeds, or cut- 
tings, are by any means destroyed one year they must be re- 
planted the next. 

THE LAND LAW OF LOUISIANA 

allows "any person making affidavit, that he or she enters for 
his or her own use and for the purpose of actual settlement and 
cultivation," to enter 100 acres of State land on the payment of 
twelve and a half cents per acre, making a total, including the 
land office fee of one dollar, of twenty-one dollars for 100 acres. 
This land may be selected in the prairie region of the State, 
along the line of the Louisiana Western or Morgan's railroad, 
contiguous to 100 acres as a United States homestead, and 100 
more acres entered under the timber culture act, and the settler 
in this mild and delightful climate will become possessed of 480 
acres of land, which, in fertility, will compare favorably with 
any of the prairie land of the bleak West. The entire cost 
will be fifty dollars and forty cents. 

An additional amount of land can be bought from the United 
States at one dollar and twenty-five cents per acre. In the 
West, where the government has given alternate sections of 
public lands to railroad companies, the price of this class of 
land is two dollars and fifty cents per acre. 

For information in regard to the entry of United States lands 
address Register, United States Land Office, New Orleans, La. 
For information of State Lauds, address Register, State Land 
Office, Baton Rouge, La. 

The recent completion of these two railroads into Southwest 
Louisiana has directed general attention to the large exteut of 
these valuable public lauds, and immigrants from the North, 
West and Southern States are building homes in this delightful 
region. The price of lands held by individuals is increasing, 



WHAT IT COSTS TO START A FARM. 25 

and in a short time the immense herds of wild cattle and horses 
which roam over this perennial pasture will be restrained by 
barbed wire fences ; and railroads and steamboats will be taxed 
to their utmost capacity to bear away to market its agricultural 
products. I have, in this connection, mentioned the prairie re- 
gion, because it allowed an additional 160 acres to be entered 
under the timber culture act, but the public lands of the State 
are not confined to any section ; they extend to every parish, and 
embrace every variety of laud mentioned in the topography of 
the State. 

The public land map prepared by the bureau will show them 
in the bluff lands, the good uplands, the pine hills, pine flats, 
and alluvial and coast marsh. 

I would advise every farmer with a capital of from $500 to 
$1000, who desires to find a home in Louisiana, to enter public 
land. He will need all his money in getting fixed up comfort- 
ably in his new home. Capitalists and planters who desire to 
enter into manufacturing our products or planting or stock 
raising on a large scale, will find many fine and large plantations 
as well as tracts of wild lands, registered for sale in the office of 
the Bureau of Immigration, under the law of the State. 



WHAT IT COSTS TO START A FARM IN LOUISIANA. 

This depends upou the size of the farm and the amount of 
money available. 

I have known of men who had barely money enough to pay 
the land office fees for 1G0 acres of land, and started with 
only an axe and a pair of oxen ; in five years they had comfort- 
able homes and well-tilled farms and a nice little stock of cattle, 
sheep, hogs and poultry. They had to work very hard at first ; 
they built log houses covered with boards, held to their places 
with the weight of sticks of timber laid on the roof. They 
could not afford to buy nails, and the floors and doors were made 
of spilt boards ; their wives and children helped them by pick- 
ing moss, selling chickens and eggs and picking cotton for the 
neighbors, while the men worked out whenever they could spare 



26 LOUISIANA. 



a day and turned their bands to anything that would make a* 
dollar. 

A very poor house will afford shelter to a working family in 
this climate, until a better one can be built, when the old ono 
serves as a kitchen. 

A man with only $500 could manage to start a farm of 480 
acres in Louisiana, with the following outlay : 

Under United States Homestead, 100 acres $ 14 00 

Under United States Timber culture act, 160 acres 14 00 

State Land, at 1&& cents per acre, 160 acres 20 00 

One pair of native horses 50 00 

One pair of oxen 40 00 

Three milch cows 45 00 

Thirty-six sheep, at $1.50 54 00 

One ox cart 40 00 

Farm tools 25 00 

One sow 5 00 

Chickens 10 (P 

Six months' provisions 50 00 

Hire of hand, three months 60 00 

Corn for team 25 00 

Lumber and nails for door, floor and windows 40 00 

Seeds 8 00* 

$ 500 00 

This is a statement of the needs of an emigrant to Louisiana 
who is determined to get all the good of the benign State and 
United States land law, with the least possible expenditure of 
money. 

The statement is fair, and every item can be bought for the 
money. 

With the assistance of a hired man three months he can build 
his cabin, dig a well, (fifteen feet deep), fence in twenty acres, 
plant rice, corn, potatoes, peas, pumpkins and five acres in cot- 
ton, and a patch of sugar cane for the children. 

The emigrant's farm house may be built very quickly and 
with little cost of the trunks of small, straight pines or cypress- 
cut close by. The body of the house is made of the logs, like a 
pen — the ends notched so as to fit and the openings between the 
logs plastered with clay. The rafters are made of green poles 
and the roof covered with clap board split from oak, cypress or 
pine. A temporary chimney may be made by plastering a 



FENCING IN THE PRAIRIES. 'IT 

skeleton wooden frame with clay mixed with moss. Lumber for 
floor, doors and shutters may be split from cypress or bought at 
the nearest saw-mill, and bricks may be bought or made. 

There is a large and prosperous German settlement at Fa- 
bacher, in St. Landry parish. The settlement was made about 
ten years ago. They clubbed together in building, and m my 
of the families were located in their houses in forty eight hours- 
after arriving on the land. In the estimate of expenses for the 
first year I have put down provisions for only six mouths. 

It is supposed that milk, butter and eggs, with vegetables 
which grow quickly, will add materially to the fare of the fam- 
ily ; fish and game will also help to feed the family. Potatoes 
will be ready for the table in April, mustard, radishes, peas and 
corn six weeks after planting. 

Eice will be harvested iu August, and cotton picking will 
commence. This crop can be picked by the good wife and chil- 
dren, and the yield will probably be three bales to five acres,, 
worth $120. Ten acres of rice would yield an average of 12^ 
barrels, worth $4 per barrel, amounting to $500 net, which to- 
gether with the proceeds of his cotton, would give the settler a 
larger capital than that expended to obtain a home and 480 
acres of land. It is supposed that the corn, peas, pumpkins 
and potatoes raised can be used to advantage on the farm. 
The rice-straw is also a valuable forage, and with, the cotton 
seed saved will keep the sheep in good order during the winter. 

The wool and lambs and calves will also add to the profits of 
the year. The farmer finds himself in a goad position to enlarge 
his fields and extend his operations for another year. Thus, 
from year to year, with the natural increase of stock, and with- 
industry, prudence and economy added to the growing value of 
his farm, comforts gather around his home, luxuries are added 
and it does not require a prophet to foretell that in twenty years- 
time the poor emigrant will become a rich and prosperous 
fanner. 

FENCING IN THE PRAIRIES. 

The prairies of Louisiaua are divided from one another by 
many streams, large and small, bordered with a heavy growth 



28 LOUISIANA. 



of timber and the traveler is never out of sight of forests ; thus 
the problem of fencing large tracts, is not so difficult to solve as 
in the boundless, naked prairies of the West. Many new-comers 
use the barbed wire on posts or plant cherokee-rose hedge ; the 
rose hedge can be contracted for at the rate of sixteen dollars 
per mile. It will turn stock in three years. The material for a 
double wire fence will cost about $100 per mile. Five cypress 
pickets will make nine feet of fence; they can be bought for 
four dollars per hundred, and will last lifty years. 

THE ADVANTAGE OF THE LOUISIANA PltAIRIES OVER THE 
WESTERN PRAIRIES. 

The farmer here can work every day in the year. In the 
West, he can only work six mouths of the year. 

In Louisiana, it is neither so hot in summer nor so cold in win- 
ter as in the West. 

The season is so long, that meadows may be cut four times a 
year. The climate is so mild, that it does not require half the 
expenditure for clothing and houses as in the West. 

Stock requires no shelter, and will thrive on the wild range of 
natural grasses, giving a greater and more regular increase than 
in colder climates. 

Vegetables are in season every month in the year. 

The Louisiana prairie is not subject to " northers " in winter, 
drought in summer, nor to the devastation of grasshoppers, 
potatoe bugs or chintz bugs. 

There is ample forest growth near at hand for building, 
fencing and firewood, and frequent navigable streams, com- 
peting with the railroads and keeping down the cost of trans- 
portation of produce to market. 

WHAT A MAN CAN MAKE ON A LOUISIANA FARM. 

After a farm has been fenced and improved, and machinery 
bought, it is almost incredible what a man can make of agri- 
cultural products in this State. 

One hand with a screw pulverizer and sower attached, can 
put in two hundred acres of rice. At 12£ bbls. per acre, this 
would yield 2500 barrels, worth $4 per barrel. Total value, 
$10,000. Ot coarse, this crop could not be harvested by one 



GRASSES. 20 



man, but, when the headers and binders are adapted to the 
harvesting - of rice, it need not cost more to harvest and prepare 
for market than wheat. Nearly all of the State lands being 
low, are emiuently suitable for the cultivation of rice. Where 
convenient to water, rice fields are irrigated, and no cultivation 
is required. 

A farmer with the aid of new improved machinery, might 
easily put in one hundred acres in rice, ten acres in corn, and 
five acres in cotton, without having the cultivation and har- 
vesting interfere with one another. 

GRASSES IN LOUISIANA. 

The following extract is taken from Howard's Manual, the 
third edition of which is before me. It is recognized as author- 
ity in the South : 

LUCERNE. 

Lucerne hay is extremely nutritious, and is relished by horses, 
cattle aud sheep. 80 far as rhe observation of the writer extends, it is 
preferred by the domestic animals to any other kind of hay. 

The product of lucerne is enormous. Five tons ot excellent hay may 
be cut from one acre of ground planted in lucerne. It is estimated that 
fodder, green and dry, may be obtained from an acre of lucerne suffi- 
cient for the support of five horses during the entire year; this includes 
the great bulk of green food during the spring, summer and autumn. 
In latitude 32° lucerne is not green during the mouths of December, 
January and a part of February. In the low country, along the Gulf 
coast, it would probably be green all the j'ear. 

It is ready to cut fully a mouth in advance of red clover. The rap- 
idity of its growth is only exceeded by asparagus. The root is perren- 
nial, lasting ten or fifteen or perhaps more years. The roots become as 
large as small sized carrots. Five acres of lucerne on this farm was 
destroyed by Sherman's horses and cattle. After that the ground was 
left riddled with holes, giving it the appearance of a locust year. The 
succeeding crop of lucerne was very heavy. This might have been ex- 
pected in view of the fact stated by Ville, that lucerne absorbs more 
ammonia from the atmosphere than any other crop. 

Lucerne seems to be indifferent to the texture of the soil, provided 
it be dry and sufficiently rich. The writer lias seen it grow luxuriantly 
on the sands of the seaboard and the clay of the bine limestone coun- 
try. But two things are required, the soil must be rich and dry. 

Great efforts have been made to introduce lucerne into the Northern 
States and England. The soil and climate of England is not suited to 
it, and the Northern States are too cold. 

Lucerne is a child of the sun. It is a plant of a warm climate. It 
grows as well in the Southern States as in Fiance and Italy. It is com- 
paratively inseasible to drought. 



■30 LOUISIANA. 



THE JOHNSON GRASS, 

ISorghum Ilalapense rises with a stem from four to twelve feet 
.Iiigh, according to the soil on which it grows, erect, smooth, 
.leaves linear, ilexuous, graceful, curling down at the ends like 
corn, flowers in a panicle at the top, at first green, changing 
gradually to brown. 

It is perennial in the South, and will yield the enormous 
41 mount of two tons at each of four cuttings. Mr. Howard says 
in his Manual: "Mr. N". B. Moore, since 1874, has devoted him- 
self steadily to the culture of this grass, and from his farm of 
100 acres he has derived an annual income of from $7000 to 
$10,000." 

This grass is propagated both by seeds and roots, which re- 
sembles those of the wild cane, and penetrate the ground to the 
depth of thirty inches. 

Mr. Post says : 

It not only thrives well on bottoms, but it will grow just as well on 
upland, and, though on poor upland it will make but little hay, it makes 
.fine pasture. It likes dry, hot weather, and while all other grasses 
seem to feel the affects of the hot sun, this retains its deep, rich green 
color, being but litte effected by the drouth. This is because of its 
long roots, which, like clover, run deep for moisture, often reaching two 
and three teet below the surface. Breaking up the land every few 
years gives it all the culture needed, while a liberal top dressing of 
-stable manure or some good fertilizer rewards the grower abundantly. 

To dairymen it is invaluable, making the richest milk and butter, be- 
ing of such a rapid growth a less number of acres for the same amount 
of stock is required. 

Where the hay made from this grass has been sold for years, the liv- 
ery men prefer it to timothy; stock men also, but they complain their 
stock eat too greedily. 

BERMUDA GRASS. 

This grass grows everywhere o the South. It takes hold 
readily upon the poorest hill-tops and gulleys, and upon the 
richest bottom lands. 

All kinds of stock eat it with avidity. It runs upon the sur- 
face of the ground, sending out roots from every joint, and thus 
propagating itself, forms quickly a dense sod, j'ieldiug an 
immense amount of hay or green food. The closest cropping and 
tramping does not hurt it at any season. One hundred pounds 
of the green grass will cure fifty pounds of perfectly dry, sweet 
,hay. 



GRASSES. 31 



Mr. Howard, in his manual, says : 

I think it very doubtful whether there is an acre of land in the South 
thoroughly set in Bermuda grass (if proper use be made of it), that is 
not worth more than any other crop that can he grown on it. If I am 
right in this broad opinion, our efforts should be to propagate it. I am 
planting it every year on such land as does not pay for cultivation. 

I cannot belter illustrate the grazing value of Bermuda grass, says 
Mr. Howard, than by an instance in my own experience. Nearly thirty 
years ago I bought an old plantation near my place, in Hancock county, 
•Ga. It was bought at a low price on account of its being infested in 
places with Bermuda grass. I permitted a man to use thirty acres of 
it which were set in Bermuda grass. He had at the time a cow, a calf, 
sow, pigs, and a brood mare. He cultivated a little crop of corn, but 
never had enough to feed his family. His stock lived upon that thirty 
acres of Bermuda grass, except for a short time during the winter, 
when they had access to other parts of the plantation. He remained 
upon his place for five or six j r ears. At the. end of that time he had 
twenty-five head of cattle, seventy-five hogs and five horses. I offered 
-him for his increase $1000, which he refused. So much for the grazing 
value of Bermuda grass. 

I cannot give a better illustration of the manurial value of this grass 
than by reference to to the crops made on this thirty acres of lands 
after the man referred to left the place : 

First crop cotton — half a stand on account of the mass of decom- 
posed sod; 1800 pounds seed-cotton, GOO pouuds of lint. Second year, 
2800 pounds seed-cotton per acre. 

Third year, sixty-five bushels of corn per acre; manured with cotton 
seed. 

Fourth crop, forty-two bushels of wheat per acre. 

The average product of this land without the grass, would have 
been not more than one hundred pounds of seed cotton, fifteen bushels 
•of corn, or ten bushels of wheat. I know of no crop that will improve 
land more, and certainly none that will give so large an increase with 
so little labor. 

A gentleman in this county informed me a few days since, that he 
(had just cut from one acre of Bermuda grass, eight two-horse wagon 
loads of excellent hay. 

The Bermuda and crab grass are at home in the South, clear down 
to the gulf shore. They not only live, but live in spite of neglect; 
and, when petted and encouraged, they make such grateful returns as 
astonish their benefactor. I have known $114 worth of Bermuda 
grass sold from seven-eights of an acre in one season. 

Mr. Edward Atkinson thinks that by a proper rotation of 
crops, with sheep, Bermuda grass, cotton and cotton seed meal, 
the worn out lands of the older cotton States, would be entirely 
renovated, and reveal a mine of wealth to the South hitherto 
unknown. 

There is little need in Louisiana for artificial pasturage, sum- 
mer or winter. We have many grasses with only local names, 
•besides, the broom sedge, the carpet grass, Bermuda grass, the 



32 LOUISIANA. 



lespidcsa striata and the white clover, the wild rye, the prairie 
grass, the gazon (paspalura) the gamma, all growing with lux- 
uriance in the woods and open lands, and crab grass in the 
stubble and corn fields, gives a summer and fall pasture, which ! 
cannot be surpassed. This is a point of superiority of the 
South over the North. The Northern farmer has nothing to 
correspond to our crab grass. We are fortunately exempt in 
Southern pastures from perennial weeds. On the whole, the 
drawbacks to successful grass culture in Louisiana are as few 
as in any part of the world. 

WINTER GRASS. 

[Howard's Manual.] 

One of the most marked and singular advantages of the South is its 
ability to grow grasses which may be pastured in winter. It is a bless- 
ing of climate which we have not yet appreciated. The raising of a 
full supply of horses, mules, cattle, sheep and hogs for our own con- 
sumption, is an absolute essential of skilled agriculture. For all of 
these, except the hog, grass either green or cured is necessary. The 
cost of cutting and saving hay has been greatly reduced by the use of 
improved implements. Still it is something. Besides the cost of the 
hay is the cost of the barn to store it in, and in addition the cost of 
feeding it out. A barn sufficiently large to hold the hay for a con- 
siderable stock is an expensive affair. Nearly all of this expense is 
saved by good winter pastures. The stock upon them do their own 
mowing, and are their own barn. Exceptional periods occur, as in a 
heavy freeze or severe storm, when some hay must be fed. By the aid 
of the winter grasses, it is perfectly practicable to raise colts, cattle 
and sheep, throughout a large portion of the South, without any other 
cost than the interest on land and the value of the salt. The first 
object of the farmer who designs to giow the grasses should be to sow 
those which are green all the winter. "Roughness," as it is called, 
may be temporarily secured by sowing corn, peas, millet and oats. 
But there is no adequate substitute for winter grass pastures. Oats, 
barley and rye may be grazed, but the stock must be taken from them 
at a season when the necessity is most pinching, and besides they 
must be sowed annually, which is expensive. They are decidedly to 
be preferred to no winter pasture, but are very inferior to permanent 
grass pastures. 

The following is taken from the valuable work of Dr. D. L. 

Phares on Southern Grasses : 

THE MEADOW OAT GRASS. 

This grass deserves to be placed at the head of the winter grasses for 
the South. It has the double advantage of beluga good hay as well as 
winter pasture grass. It does not answer well on the moist laud. Rich 
upland is the proper soil for it. On such land it will grow*from five to 
seven feet tall, completely hiding a man walking in it. It will grow 
on more sandy land than most of the artificial grasses. The yield of 



GRASSES. 33 



hay per acre is large and the quality excellent. It matures rapidly. 
Seed sown in the spriug will produce seed iu the fall; the seed is ripe 
when the stalk is greeu. This is a great advantage in being able to 
save the seed and hay from the same crop. The amount of green food 
yielded by this grass during the winter is greater than from any other 
grass. 

M. MACULATA— (Spotted Medich.) 

This is a valuable plant. It was brought from Chili to California 
and thence to the United State* under the name of California Clover 
or Yellow Clover. Many mistook it for Lucerne, and still so call it. 
This has only two or three yellow blossoms in each cluster, while lu- 
cerne has many blue blossoms in an elongated head. 

I have grown this plant about twenty- five years. It furnishes good 
grazing from February till April or May, a small lot of ground feeding 
-i large number of cattle, sheep, etc. Cattle do not like to eat it at 
first, but it is easy to teach them, and they acquire a great fondness for 
it. But all the grass-eating animals, including geese, know and eat 
lucerne greedily at first sight. Horses that refuse the spotted medick 
when green, eat it readily when wilted or dried. The last lot I sowed 
was in 1859 or I860. Every year many persons passing the public 
roads near this lot stop and admire the luxuriant growth. For a num- 
ber of years my live stock had access to it from December to March or 
later with much profit. On removing them, it shot up and spread out 
rapidly in April and May, in the latter month maturing an immense 
quantity of seed and then dying. In June the crab grass (Punicum 
Sauc/uinale) sprang up on the same ground, and in August this grass, 
while in bloom, was mowed. In October, I had a second lighter 
mowing. In a few weeks the medick would be up and in full pos- 
session of the ground till the next June. 

Thus, for years I had the latter for grazing in winter and spring, and 
iu August and October took off two and a half or three toys of hay per 
acre. The hay is better than you ever got from the West. 

After a luxuriant crop of medick, the ground is very loose and in a 
condition to produce a good crop of anything. One may cultivate the 
land every year, and make better crops of corn and cotton than on 
ground not occupied by the medick, and still have the benefit of the 
latter for winter and early spring grazing. 

ACROSTIS VULGARIS. 

This is the Bed Top Grass or Herd's Grass of Pennsylvania and the 
Southern States, and the Bent Grass of England. It grows two or 
three feet high, but I have mowed some even four feet high. It makes 
good hay in the South and good pasture on lands moderately moist. It 
grows well in marshes and is not injured by overflow, even though 
somewhat prolonged. It may be sown the same as orchard grass, two 
or three bushels to the acre. 

POA PRATENSIS. 

This is also called Smooth Meadow Grass, Spear Grass ; in Kentucky, 
Blue Grass. The first year after sowing this grass is so small that some 
persons have given it up as a failure and have plowed it up. The sec- 
ond year there is some growth, but this grass does not attain perfection 
until the third year. It grows as well here, and I think better, and 
during the first aud second year makes a much better show than in the 



34 LOUISIANA. 



far-fanied Bine Grass Region of Kentucky, or anywhere else that I 
have seen ; I would say that it should give, from three to four tons of 
bay to the acre. 

HOLCUS LANATUS, 

known as the velvet grass, feather grass, white timothy of the Old World 
and the velvet Mesqiiite of Texas. 

This grass grows luxuriantly all the winter in Louisiana. 

Dr. Phares says : 

Its nutritive properties consist wholly in mucilage and sugar, while 
animals relish more the grasses whose nutritive matter is partly sub- 
acid and saline . That it is not from deficiency of nutritive matter, but 
• ather excess, will be evident on comparing this with other grasses. 

Let us take the orchard grass in bloom. 

One acre of orchard grass yields green grass 27,905 pounds, which 
dried gives 11,859 pounds, containing 1089 pounds of nutritive matter. 

An acre of Holcus, same kind of laud, gives green grass 19,057 
pounds; dried, 6193 pounds ; nutritivo matter, 1191 pounds. As tbis 
grass in its green state contains less water than others, it yields an im- 
mensely larger percentage of nutritive matter than Orchard and others, 
though not in so desirable a proportion and condition to suit the taste 
of animals. It ought to be specially valuable for milch cows and sheep, 
and for lean horses that it is desirable to fatten. Fed green, it would 
be better for work stock than any other green grass. 



FOOD CROPS. 

Notwithstanding the planters of Louisiana have in the past 
adhered to her staples of sugar, cotton and rice, the smaller 
farmers have a more diversified system, many of them raising all 
of their home supplies except tea and coffee. Under this salu- 
tary system the small farmer is absolutely independent, and it is 
still the custom in the southwestern part of the State for the 
clothing of the entire family to be spun, woven and made at 
home. 

The negroes throughout the cotton belt have mostly moved to 
the alluvial lands, where they receive higher wages, and have 
left the uplands to the intelligent white farmers, native and 
foreign. The result is seen in the increase of the cotton crop of 
the South to over 6,000,000 bales. 

With the uplands of our State settled by intelligent white 
immigrants, cultivating smaller farms, with better plowing, 
fertilizing and a more intelligent system of cultivation, using 
all the appliances of modern husbandry, our production of the 
staples could be readily doubled on the area now devoted to 



FOOD (J BO Pis. 35 



them, leaving- the farmer leisure to devote to cereals, fruits and 
home comforts. 

Our white farmers have already successfully demonstrated 
that cotton, sugar, rice and tobacco can be grown by them in 
this State withoufr-the constant drudgery that was once thought 
necessary for their production. They find leisure to beautify 
their homes and surround them with comforts and even luxu- 
ries, while laying by money for a rainy day. 

But it is frequently asked by Europeans : Can " white men " 
labor under a summer sun in the Southern States ? 

I answer that "white men" do labor with remarkable success 
in midsummer in the Northern States, where the heat is greater 
and the days longer, and what is to prevent them from laboring 
in the South, where the heat is less and the days are shorter 
and the nights of more refreshing coolness? 

Out of the whole number of laborers now employed South in 
the cultivation of cotton, it has been estimated that fully one- 
half are white men. 

SUMMER HEAT NORTH AND SOUTH. 

The Northern summer is short — much shorter than in the 
South — but it is much hotter while it lasts, and plants get their 
required amount of sunshine iu a smaller number of days. 

Observations on temperature made by scientific men since 
1819, have been preserved in the Smithsonian Institute, aud 
published from time to time and transmitted by its secretary to 
the Agricultural Bureau, and embodied iu its report. From an 
examination of these tables it will be seen that the proposition 
which I have advanced is incoutestably true. In one of the 
recent reports the fact is stated aud philosophically accounted 
for as follows: "For though there is absolutely more heat at 
the latitude of New Orleans during the year than at Madison, 
Wisconsin, yet there is more heat received at this latter place 
during the three months of midsummer than in the same time 
at the former place." 

In the same report, and accompanying it, is a table showing 
the sun's diurnal intensity at every ten degrees of latitude. It 
further says: "On the fifteenth of June, the sun is more than 



36 LOUISIANA. 



23° north of the equator, and therefore it might be readily in- 
ferred that the intensity of heat should be greater at this lati- 
tude than at the equator; but, that it should continue to 
increase beyond this even to the pole, as indicated by the table, 
might not at first sight appear so clear. It will, however, be 
understood, when it is recollected that though in a northern 
latitude the obliquity of the ray is greater, and on this account 
the intensity should be less, yet the longer duration of the day 
is more than sufficient to compensate for this effect and produce 
the result exhibited." 

IGNORANCE IN AMERICA RESPECTING CLIMATE. 

Much greater ignorance is apparent even in America on this 
subject than would at first appear. Wealthy Southerners im- 
agine that, if they can only grow sufficient cotton or sugar to 
take them North during the summer months, where during 
June, July and August, they can manage to keep cool, they 
will be healthy during the remainder of the year; and while 
sweltering in Northern watering places, and "roasting" in 
Northern cities, they console themselves in enduring the great 
heat, by the mistaken belief that it is an unusually heated term 
for that climate, and that it must be much warmer at their 
Southern homes. 

On the other hand, Northerners who have spent the winter 
in the South in search of health or profit, hasten away at the 
first warm breath of summer, impelled by the same delusion. 

On the twenty eighth of June, the thermometer in Havana 
and Mobile was at 82°, in Key West and New Orleans at 84°, in 
Buffalo, at 87°, but in New York city at 94°. By comparing 
the telegraphic advices from various portions of the country and 
the West Indies, it will be perceived that New York on that day 
was thermometrically (although not geographically) nearer the 
equator and the torrid zone than either Florida or Cuba by fully 
10°. Could Southern tourists, in search of cool and more invig- 
orating climates, have returned on that day to their homes in 
Louisiana, they would have felt as if they had been transported 
several degrees towards the north pole and the frigid zone from 
the latitude of New York city. 



THE GREAT WEST. 37 

THE GREAT WEST. 
The following is an extract from the report of Prof. J. Henry, 
the learned secretary of the Smithsonian Institute, made for the 
benefit of the Agricultural Bureau in 1856, and reported to Con- 
gress — and to be found in the Agricultural report of that year, 
page 480. We commend the entire report to emigrants wishing 
to come to America : 

The general character of the soil between the Mississippi river and 
the Atlantic is that of great fertility, and, as a whole, in its natural 
condition, with some exceptions at the West, is well supplied with tim- 
ber. The portion also, on the western side of the Mississippi, as far as 
the 98th meridian, including the States of Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, 
Missouri, Iowa, Minnesota, and portions of the Territory of Kansas 
and Nebraska, are fertile, though abounding in prairies and subject 
occasionally to droughts. But the whole space to the west, between 
the 98th meridian and the Rocky Mountains, is a barren waste, over 
which the eye may roam to the extent of the visible horizon with 
scarcely an object to break the monotony. From the Rocky Mountains 
to the Pacific, with the exception of the rich but narrow belt along the 
ocean, the country may also be considered, in comparison with other 
portions of the United States, a wilderness, unfitted for the uses of the 
husbandman; although in some of the mountain vallejs, as at Salt 
Lake, by means of irrigation, a precarious supply of food may be ob- 
tained, sufficient to sustain a considerable population; provided, they 
can be induced to submit to privations from which American citizens 
generally would shrink. The portions of the mountain system further 
south are generally inhospitable, though they have been represented 
to be of a different character. In traversing this region whole days 
are frequently passed without meeting a rivulet or spring of water to 
slake the thirst of thetweary traveler. It is true that a considerable 
portion of the interior is comparatively little known from actual ex- 
ploration, but its general character can be inferred from that which has 
been explored. As has been said before, it consists of an elevated 
swell of land, covered with ridges running in a northerly direction in- 
clining to the west. The western slopes, or those which face the ocean, 
are better supplied with moisture and contain more vegetation than the 
eastern slopes ; and this increases as we approach the Pacific, along the 
coast of which, throughout the whole boundary of the Uuited States to 
the Gulf of California, exists a border of land of delightful climate and 
of fertile soil, varying from 50 to 200 miles in width. The transition, 
however, from this border, to a parallel district in the interior, is of 
the most marked and astonishing character. Starting from the sea- 
coast, and leaving a temperature of 65 degrees, we may, in the course 
of a single day's journey, in some cases, reach an arid valley, in which 
the thermometer in the shade marks a temperature of 110 degrees. We 
have stated that the entire region west of the 98th degree of west lon- 
gitude, with the exception of a small portion of western Texas, and 
the narrow border along the Pacific, is a country of comparatively lit- 
tle value to the agriculturist; and, perhaps, it will astonish the reader, 
if we direct his attention to the fact that this line, which passes south- 
ward from Lake Winnipeg to the Gulf of Mexico, will divide the 



38 LOUISIANA. 



whole surface of the United States into two nearly equal parts. This 
statement, when fully appreciated, will serve to dissipate some of the 
dreams which have been considered as realities, as to the destiny of 
the western part of the North American coutinent. Truth, however, 
transcends even the laudable feelings of pride of country; and in or- 
der properly to direct the policy of this great confederacy, it is neces- 
sary to be well acquainted with the theatre on which its future history 
is to be enacted, and by whose character it will mainly be shaped. 

This report was made twenty-five years since, and it has been 
proven to be true, to the sorrow of many thousands of immi- 
grants, who are now seeking to get away from those vast 
rainless, treeless, arid deserts, where they have been scorched 
by the sun's fierce rays in summer and their very marrow 
frozen in the long winter; where a rain sufficient to insure the 
growth of crops is surely followed by the plague of grass- 
hoppers, chintz bugs and Colorado beetles, and a continued 
struggle for one-half the year is required to keep life in man 
and beast during the winter. 

The lauds are largely owned by railroad companies, by whom 
they have been advertised all over the world, and made attract- 
ive on paper and maps. Millions of acres have been •sold to 
settlers from the East and Europe, and millions more are for 
sale, and are still advertised as a " good land, a land of brooks 
of water, of fountains and depths that spring out of valleys 
and hills — a land of wheat and barley, atlfl vines, and fig trees, 
and pomegranates — a land of oil, olive and honey — a land 
wherein thou shalt eat bread without scarceness, thou shalt not 
lack anything in it; a land whose stones are iron, and out of 
whose hills thou mayest dig brass." 

We do not pretend to say that there are no good lands in the 
West, but we do say that all such lands are long since occupied, 
and the tide of emigration has rolled up to the extreme western 
limit, to the dry-line and the alkaline deserts, and is now flow- 
ing back and tending toward the southwest, a section which 
even to Americans is a terra incognita, where immigration has 
not been desired or invited till recently. 

In this connection I reprod — ' f,,a following letter from a 
Kausas farmer : 



THE GREAT WEST. 39 



Phili.ipsbuhg, Kan., June 5, 1880. 
Commissioner of Immigration, State of Louisiana: 

Dear Siu — I have resided in this (Phillips) countj . Kansas, for the 
last eight years. When I lauded here in 1872, the face of the country 
was magnificently carpeted with a rich coat of buffalo grass, about two 
inches high, just after a good rain. The birds were singing and all 
nature appeared to be alive. I located on a homestead of 160 acres, and 
with two teams, commenced to turn up the virgin soil to the blue vaults 
of heaven. Believing that I had struck the Eldorado of the West, or 
the place where the world was finished from the plastie hand of an 
Omnipotent God, and by him pronounced good — filled with hope, in- 
spired with the surrounding scenes of nature, I began to lay the foun- 
dation of a future home. One hundred acres of land were broken in 
1874, and planted to corn on my farm, and not one grain of corn was 
raised — not a cob on the place matured, for the grasshoppers came and 
totally destroyed the entire crop. In 1875, I planted seventy-five acres 
of corn and gathered 150 bushels, the grasshoppers getting the rest, and 
likewise for four years in succession the grasshoppers did the gather- 
ing. Still hope has filled the bosoms of the farmers with energy. At 
seasons when there are no grasshoppers — there is generally a tremen- 
dous dry time. I have never seen a half crop raised yet in this coun- 
try. At present we have had no rain since November, 1879, that was 
sufficient to wet the ground one inch deep at any time. Thousands of 
acres are this season lying vacant in this county, from the fact that the 
ground is so dry that it cannot be plowed, and the crops cannot be 
planted. Hundreds of families are to-day living on the hospitality and 
generosity of their neighbors. Hundreds are leaving their claims. 
Last week one farm of 160 acres, with a house on it, ten miles from the 
county seat of this county, sold for the sum of $2 05. Another farm 
of 160 acres, within four miles of Phillipsburg, that cost one year ago 
$300, was sold this week for a sewing machine worth not more than $30. 

Thousands of farms^re here for sale; everybody discouraged and no 
buyers. Still our soil is as productive as that of anj- land beneath the 
broad canopy of hi^h Heaven, but the trouble is, we cannot get rain- 
fall enough on it to develop it. 

The settlers here are generally honest, intelligent, industrious and 
energetic, and very poor. They hope that next year they will raise a 
better crop than this year, and so on. They are living on hope de- 
ferred. 

My experience is this, that Kansas, like Palestine, the wandering 
place of the Jews, has been wonderfully overrated, having the largest 
history for so small a place on the globe. 

Three-fourths of the farmers in this county, have spent more money 
than they have made since they came here, while working hard and 
practicing economy, living, like Marion, on corn bread and water, 
instead of roots and water. 

Last season I was down in Graham county, this State, forty miles 
southwest of this. There are some 1500 negroes from the South located 
there, on nice land, living in holes iu the ground, without a door shut- 
ter, without a window, without teams, without money, without limber, 
using weeds for fuel; without water, save as they would carry it from 
the creek from one to miles distant; living on bread and water, and 
some of them were actually eating the buds of the wild rose, having 
gathered them and mashed them up. 



40 LOUISIANA. 



This statement is not overdrawn ; in fact, it is really worse than I 
have stated it. The wheat crop here is a failure this season ; our gen- 
eral yield is from two to twelve bushels per acre. Now sir, I desire to 
change my domicile. I want to find a place where a person can make 
an honest living, I want to know what inducement your State offers 
to immigration. 

If necessary, I can bring 100 families, as one-half the people here 
would migrate if they knew where to go and what they could do when 
they got there to make a living. What can a person do there, with 
say from $500 to $1500? 

What can land be bought for, and on what terms and conditions, in 
your State ? What crops can be raised, and what are the prices of 
produce or crops when raised? What is the health of the country ? 
How is the best way to come to your State 7 How are your crops? 
How is your fruit ? How is your land, and what is the prospect for a 
poor industrious man to make a living in your State? 

Hoping to hear from you soon in this matter. I remain, yours re- 
spectfully, J. D. BRADLEY. 



GENERAL ADVICE. 

The immigrant laborer need not hesitate to come to Louisiana, 
lie can obtain employment immediately at remunerative wages 
by applying to the office of the Commissioner of Immigration, 
110 Gravier street, New Orleans. There is always a demand 
for agricultural laborers all over the State, but the demand is 
increased and the wages doubled during the harvest of rice, 
cotton and sugar, which extends from August 1 to February 1. 

THE WHEAT HARVESTERS OF THE WEST 

would find it greatly to their advantage to come to Louisiana 
after the wheat harvest is over at home and assist in saving our 
crops. They could either ship as deck-hands ou a Mississippi 
river steamboat or buy "round trip" return tickets by railroad, 
as is the custom of many young men of the West who visit us 
annually, some of them finding wives and homes in our hospi- 
table State. 

HOW TO GO TO LOUISIANA. 
Louisiana can be reached by railroad from any part of the 
United States, but we would advise those coming from New 
York to take one of the line of steamers. There 
are steamers running direct to New Orleans from 
the principal ports of Europe. The United States 
lands and the State lands within the borders of Louisiana are 
ample and sufficient for homesteads for many thousand families, 



GENERAL ADVICE. 41 

and although some immigrants of extraordinary vim and energy 
have entered upon homesteads without any capital, and suc- 
ceeded in establishing comfortable homes, we would not advise 
an immigrant to attempt to enter a homestead without a few 
hundred dollars to start with. Our State and people desire that 
the immigrant shall prosper, and become the owner of the soil 
he cultivates, and an independent American citizen; but if he 
has no means to buy plows, stock, cows, sheep, hogs and poul- 
try, cart and farming implements, it would be better for him to 
hire to some farmer already established or to " work for shares" 
until he has a start of from $300 to $500. 

THE FOREIGN EMIGRANT 

need not hesitate or wait for a colony before coming to Louisiaua. 
He will find on arrival some of his countrymen already here. 
Our population is essentially cosmopolitan. Every fifteenth 
person in the State is a foreigner, and representatives of every 
nation on the face of the globe are within our borders. 

Write to the Commissioner of Immigration, New Orleans, 
Louisiana, for special information, and learn before you come 
all necessary facts. To reach Texas from Europe or New York, 
it is necessary to come by way of New Orleans, and to pass by 
railroad through Louisiana a distance of 200 miles. This sec- 
tion of Louisiana, possesses all the advantages of Texas as a 
stock country, without its disadvantages, and contains some of 
the richest land for farming purposes in the world. 

MANY WESTERN FARMERS 

suffering from lung diseases and rheumatism have fled from 
the bleak western plains to our sunny climate. They found a 
safe asylum and recovered health and strength. More than this, 
they have found friends among our people. They have built 
themselves houses and gathered comforts and luxuries around 
them, and now literally sit under their own vines and fig trees. 

THE CLASS OF PEOPLE MOST NEEDED IN LOUISIANA 

are farmers, men who will rent or buy the laud and cultivate it; 
laboring men and women, who will work for monthly wages ; 
mechanics of nearly every trade ; men with capital who will 
engage in the stock business, build mills and manufactories, 
occupy the '« turned out" cotton and sugar plantations and re- 



42 LOUISIANA. 



claim the millions of acres of rice lands on the sea-coast. There 
is not much demand for teachers, male and female, especially 
in the rural districts, or for professional men, book-keepers, 
clerks and indoor men generally. The men most needed, are 
those that can turn the virgin soil and produce something from 
the ground. 

Our country is too accessible and has too many natural ad- 
vantages for us to pay the passageof any or invite the masses 
of unproductive people upon us; we only want those who, with 
their capital or labor, will not only be self-supporting, but add 
to their own and the wealth of the country, and become good 
and law-abiding citizens amongst us. 

We need more producers, more people to settle up the public 
lauds, more bone and sinew and brains to reap the full reward 
of intelligent and progressive husbandry, to make Louisiana 
the garden spot of the world. Slavery is gone and forever. The 
civil and political rights of white and black are perfeetly pro- 
tected, and our State constitution is more free aud liberal than 
that of Massachusetts. 

To the farmers of the older Cotton States, and those of the 
North and West, and especially to the ex-United State soldiers 
who fought us during the war, we extend a cordial invitation to 
become citizens of Louisiana. 

A PROSPEROUS GERMAN COLONY. 

Fabacher, St. Landry Parish, La. 
W. II. Harris, Commissioner of Immigration, New Orleans, La. 

Dear Sir — I take the liberty to write you a few lines to let you know 
how the German settlement in St. Landry is progressing. It lays 
about twenty-nine miles from Opelousas, La , west, and about sixteen 
miles from the Mermentau river, where the New Orleans and Texas 
railroad crosses the river; there is a station about sixteen miles from 
here on the railroad. 

About nine years ago myself and Mr. Jos. Fabacher started the Ger- 
man settlement. We are from New Orleans, but were born in Germanj-. 
I am fron Baden and Jos. Fabacher from Bavaria. Mr. Peter Klein, 
Chris Ruppert, John Frey followed the year following; they are from 
Bavaria. They had nothing when they came here and to-day each of 
them have about forty head of cattle and horses; they homesteaded 
some land and they are doing well. Messi's. John Linden and Tlieo. 
Flesh arrived here about eight years ago. They are also doing well ; 
they homesteaded some land. Fred. Zenter, from Prussia, arrived here 
also about six years ago; he also Homesteaded a piece of land and is 
doing well. Mr. Vettus Wilfert, with his family, from Austria, arrived 



A PROSPEROUS COLON t. 43 



here about six years ago ; he was like the rest, without means. So was 
John Meyers, from Prussia. Mr. Frank Krayter, also from Austria, 
about two years ago, homesteader! a piece of land ; he is doing well. 
Each and everyone of the parties mentioned to-day have plenty of cat- 
tle and horses to do their work with ; they have each planted about 
forty acres of rice, and never buy anything on credit; pay cash for 
everything they need. They all raise plenty of corn, Irish and sweet 
potatoes, sugar cane and oats. 

Mr. G. Miller keeps the Point-a-Loup Springs, one of the finest wa- 
tering places in the South. A good many people are cured every year 
of rheumatism by these excellent springs. They are nine miles from 
the German settlement. There are eight families from Polish Prussia, 
who arrived about three years ago, about twelve miles from here ; they 
are also prosperous. We have a saw mill, grist mill, a sugar mill and 
two rice threshers. We have also a Catholic church and public schools. 
It is one of the healthiest places in the world; we don't know any- 
thing about sickness. Up here the country is a rolling prairie, with 
plenty of timber. Hogs are plentiful ; they don't need any care ; there 
is an abundance of acorns to fatten them in winter. 

Messrs. James Little and Chas. Swanton, from New Orleans, settled 
here this year ; they are also doing well. The country is also well 
adapted to sheep raising. 

I believe we will have a rice mill at Opelousas. Mr. Jos. Block told 
me he would put one up this season. If that is the case, we will have 
a glorious time up here. I forgot to mention we also have a post-office 
here. There arrived about six months ago some young men em- 
igrants from Prussia. They will homestead some land ; as soon as the 
Parish Court sits, they will declare their intention of becoming citizens 
and settle here. Nobody leaves the place who ever comes here. They 
are all delighted with it. I forgot to mention Louis F. Chambers and 
Louis Chambers also settled here some six years ago. They are from 
Alsace, and John Friden from Prussia ; they are, like the rest, doing 
well. Tobacco grows well here. The people raise all the tobacco they 
need. 

By information received from some of the within mentioned parties 
there will arrive from Bavaria some emigrants next fall, relatives of 
them. The rice crop is magniticeut; oats did well this year; so did 
Irish potatoes. A good deal of the latter are planted and up for this 
fall. Sweet potatoes, cane and tobacco look well. Very little cotton 
is planted, but what is planted looks well. This is about all I can 
write you about the German settlement. 

Hoping the perusal of this letter will not worry you, I remain re- 
spectfully yours, etc., 

ZENO HUBERT, 



TEMPERATURE IN LOUISIANA. 

It is erroneously supposed that the summers of Louisiana 
are very hot. By reference to the record of the U. S. Signal 
Service, kept in -the Custom House at New Orleans, it will be 
found that in very few days in summer, does the thermometer 
reach a maximum over 90°. It is unusual for the thermometer, 
even for a single day in the year, to reach above 92°, and at 



44 



LOUISIANA. 



such times the thermometer iii Northern cities will register 10° 
higher. 

The nights are pleasant during the warmest weather, even in 
the city of New Orleans. The hot sultry nights of the North, 
during which it is impossible to sleep comfortably, are never 
experienced here, and out door labor is regularly done through- 
out the summer without fear of sunstroke. 

THIRTEEN TEARS OF MONTHLY MEANS OF TEMPERATURE, 

As shown by Record of the observer of United States Signal Service, being 
the average of three observations (6 a. m., 2 and 10 p.m.) daily, at 
New Orleans, La. 



MONTH. 



January 

February 

March 

April 

May 

June 

July 

August 

September 

October 

November 

December 

Annual Mean 



187] 



1872 



49 3 
60 3 
GO 2 
66 1 
73 .7 
80.1 
81 9 
81.0 
78 5 
67.9 
6 .1 
56 . 5 



187-1 



55.8 
58.9 
66.8 
65 5 
75.3 
81.0 
81.2 
33 8 
78.7 
70 2 
03.0 
58.6 



18751876 



360 
6 59, 

8|30 
8|68 




53 

55.6 

60.7 

67.9 

72.5 

81.1 

83.4 

82.8 

78.3 

69 

58 2 

55.6 



69.2'67 3 68.0 69.9 68.8 68 7 68 3 69.3 69.8 69.4 69.9170.8 . 



50.9 
55.4 
66.4 
71.7 
75.9 
82.2 
84.3 
83.6 
78.6 
70.9 
60.7 
50.8 



63 
60.4 
65.5 
71.2 
76.3 
80.0 
81.4 
81.1 
76.5 
67.9 
56.3 
52.9 



.3 62.4 
.0,62.5 
.6;67.9 

.8172.5 
.8|74.4 
.381.5 
.380. t 
.880 5 
.177.6 
.273-3 
.2 62 8 
.254.0 



56.8 
62.9 
61.7 
71.3 
74.3 
60.7 
83.5 
83.3 
79 4 
75.4 
63.5 



Monthly 
Average 



54.7 
58.9 
62.4 
68.7 
75.4 
81.0 
82.6 
81.9 
78.2 
70.4 
56.1 
51.0 



CAPACITY OF LOUISIANA FOR POPULATION. 

Louisiana has only about 21 inhabitants to the square mile. 
France, 178 inhabitants to the square mile. The same ratio of 
population would give Louisiana over seven and one half mil- 
lion of inhabitants. With the manufacture of our agricultural 
products at home, there is no question of the capacity of the 
State for supporting even a population of fifteen million. 

CONSTITUTION OF THE STATE OF LOUISIANA, 

1879. 

BILL OF RIGHTS. 

Article 1. All government of right originates with the people, is 
founded on their will aloue, and is instituted solely for the good of the 
whole, deriving its just powers from the consent of the governed. 
Its only ligitimate end is, to protect the citizen in the enjoyment of 
life, liberty and property. When it assumes other functions it is 
usurpation and oppression. 

Art. 2. The right of the people to be secure in their persons, 
houses, papers and against unreasonable searches and seizures shall 
not be violated, and no warrant shall issue, except upon probable 
cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing 
the place to be searched and the persons or things to be seized. 



CONSTITUTION OF THE STATE. 45 



Art. 3. A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of 
a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not 
be abridged. This shall not prevent the passage of laws to punish 
those who carry weapons concealed. 

Art. 4. No law shall be passed respecting an establishment of re- 
ligion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof, or abridging the freedom 
of speech, or of the press, or the right of the people peaceably to 
assemble and petition the government for a redress of grievances. 

Art. 5. There shall be neither slavery nor involuntary servitude in 
this State, otherwise than for the punishment of crime, whereof the 
party shall have been duly convicted. Prosecutions shall be by in- 
dictment or information ; provided, that no person shall be held to 
answer for a capital crime, unless on a presentment or indictment by a 
grand jury, except in cases arising in the militia when in actual service 
in time of war or public danger, nor shall any person be twice put in 
jeopardy of life or liberty for the same offense, except on his own 
application for a new trial, or where there is a mistrial, or a motion in 
arrest of judgment is sustained. 

Art. 6. No person shall be compelled to give evidence against 
himself in a criminal case, or in any proceeding that may subject him 
to criminal prosecution, except where otherwise provided in this con- 
stitution, nor be deprived of life, liberty or properly, without due 
process of law. 

Art. 7. In all criminal prosecutiofls, the accused shall enjoy the 
right to a speedy public trial by an impartial jury, except that in Vases 
where the penalty is not necessarily imprisonment at hard labor or 
death, the General Assembly may provide for the trial thereof by a 
jury less than twelve in number; provided that the accused, in every 
instance, shall be tried in the parish wherein the offense shall have 
been committed, except in cases of change of venue. 

Art. 8. In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the 
right to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation, to be 
confronted with the witnesses against him, to have compulsory process 
for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to defend himself, and to have 
the assistance of counsel and to have the right to challenge jurors 
peremptorily, the number of challenges to be fixed by statute. 

Art. 9, Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines be 
imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishment inflicted. All persons 
shall be bailable by sufficient sureties, unless for capital offenses where 
the proof is evident or the presumption great, or unless after con- 
viction for any crime or offense punishable with death or imprison- 
ment at hard labor. 

Art. 10. The privilege of the writ of habeas corpus shall not be sus- 
pended, unless when in case of rebellion or invasion, the public safety 
may require it. 

Art. 11. All courts shall be open, and every person for injury done 
him in his rights, lands, goods, person or reputation shall have ade- 
quate remedy by due process of law and justice administered without 
denial or unreasonable delay. 

Art. 12. The military shall be in subordination to the civil power. 

Art. 13. This enumeration of rights, shall not be construed to deny 
or impair other rights of the people not herein expressed. 



4G LOUISIANA. 



FRANCHISE. 

Art. 185. Every male citizen of the United States, and every male 
person of foreign birth who has been naturalized, or who may have 
legally declared his intention to become a citizen of the United States 
before he offers to vote, who is twenty-one years old or upwards, pos- 
sessing the following qualifications, shall be an elector and shall be 
entitled to vote at any election by the people, except as hereinafter 
provided : 

1. He shall be an actual resident of the State at least one year next 
preceding the election at which he offers to vote. 

2. He shall be an actual resident of the parish in which he offers to 
vote at least six months next preceding the election. 

3. He shall be an actual resident of the ward or precinct in which 
he offers to vote at least thirty days next preceding the election. 

Art. 187. The following persons shall not be permitted to register, 
vote or hold any office or appointment of honor, profit or trust in this 
State, to-wit: 

Those who shall have been convicted of treason, embezzlement of 
public funds, malfeasance in office, larceny, bribery, illegal voting or 
other crime punishable by hard labor or imprisonment in the peni- 
tentiary, idiots and insane persons. 

Art. 188. No qualification of any kind for suffrage or office, nor any 
restraint upon the same, on account of race, color or previous condi- 
tion shall be made by law. 

PROPERTY EXEMPT FROM TAXATION. 

Art. 207. The following property shall be exempt from taxation, 
and no other, viz: All public property, places of religions worship or 
burial, all charitable institutions, all buildings and property used ex 
clusively for colleges or other school purposes, the real and personal 
estate of any public library and that of any other literary association 
used by or connected with such library, all books and philosophical 
apparatus, and all paintings and statuary of any company or associa- 
tion kept in a public hall ; provided, the property so exempted be not 
used or leased for purposes of private or corporate profit or income. 
There shall also be exempt from taxation, household property to the 
value of five hundred dollars. There shall also be exempt from taxa- 
tion and license for a period of ten years, from the adoption of this 
constitution, the capital, machinery and other property employed in 
the manufacture of textile fabrics, leather, shoes, harness, saddlery, 
hats, flour, machinery, agricultural implements and furniture and other 
articles of wood, marble or stone, soap, stationery, ink and paper, 
boat building and chocolate; provided, that not less than five hands 
aie employed in any one factory. 

POLL TAX FOR SCHOOLS. 

Art. 208. The General Assembly shall levy an annual poll tax for 
the maintenance of public schools upon every male inhabitant in the 
State over the age of twenty-one years, which shall never be less than 
one dollar nor exceed one dollar and a half per capita, and the General 
Assembly shall pass laws to iuforce payment of said tax. 

LIMITATION OF TAXATION. 

Art. 209. The State tax on property for all purposes whatever, in- 
cluding expense of government, schools, levees and interest shall not 



HOMESTEADS AND EXEMPTIONS. 47 



exceed in any one year six mills on the dollar of its assessed valuation, 
and no parish or municipal tax for all purposes whatsoever shall exceed 
ten mills on the dollar of valuation. 

HOMESTEADS AND EXEMPTIONS. 

Art. 219. There shall be exempt from seizure and sale by any pro- 
cess whatever, except as herein provided, the "homesteads" bona fide 
owned by the debtor and occupied by him, consisting of lands, build- 
ings and appurtenances, whether rural or urban ; of every head of a 
family, or persons having a mother or father, a person or persons de- 
pendent on him or her for support ; also one work-horse, one wagon or 
cart, one yoke of oxen, tAvo cows and calves, twenty-five head of hogs, 
or one thousand pounds of bacon or its equivalent in poik, whether 
these exempted objects be attached to a homestead or not, and on a 
farm the necessary quantity of corn and fodder for the current year, 
and the necessary farming implements to the value of two thousand dol- 
lars. 

LEGAL PROVISIONS OF GENERAL INTEREST. 

No greater personal rights are granted to immigrants in any part of 
the world than in Louisiana. Every man thinks, speaks and votes as 
he pleases. If he is injured in person, property or character, the law 
affords a certain and speedy remedy, and will vigorously enforce his 
rights. The laws grant a lien upon property in favor of laborers, 
mechanics and landlords. 

There is no imprisonment for debt, and a reasonable amount of pro- 
perty is exempt from seizure and sale. There is perfect freedom of 
religious opinion and tolerance of all sects. The people choose their 
own officers, and the ballot of the poor man is as strong as that of the 
rich. Any citizen of the State, although born in a foreign country, can 
hold office. The homestead exemption will prevent any creditor from 
taking away the home of your family. 

No person shall be deprived of life, liberty or property without due 
process of law. 

Every person has the right to defend his own case either in person 
or by attorney. 

Every person charged with an offense against the laws of the State 
has the privilege and benefit of counsel, is entitled on demand to a 
copy of the accusation, a list of the witnesses on whose testimony the 
charge is made, and shall have compulsory process to obtain the tes- 
timony of his own witnesses; shall be confronted by the witnesses 
testifying against him, and shall have a public and speedy trial by an 
impartial jury. 

The State tax, for all purposes whatsoever, shall never be more than 
60 cents on the $100, and the parish tax shall never be more than 
$1 on the $100. 

Perfect freedom to worship God according to the dictates of his own 
conscience is guaranteed to every citizen. 

No inhabitant of this State shall be molested in person or property, 
or prohibited from holding any public office or trust, on account of 
his religious belief. 

No law shall ever be passed to curtail or restrain the liberty of 
speech or of the press. 

The right ot the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers 
and effects against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be 



48 LOUISIANA. 



violated ; and no warrant shall issue, except upon probable cause, sup- 
ported by oath or affirmation, particularly describing the place or 
places to be searched, and the person or things to be seized. 

The social status of the citizen shall never be the subject of legis- 
lation. 

The right of the people peaceably to assemble, and by petition or 
remonstrance, apply to the government for a redress of their grievances, 
shall not be denied. 

No conviction shall work corruption of blood or forfeiture of estate. 

Private property shall not be taken nor damaged for public purposes 
without just and adequate compensation to the owner. 

No ex post facto law, or law impairing the obligation of contracts, 
shall be passed. 

Differences between citizens, may be legally decided by arbitration 
without going to law. 

The military shall be in subordination to the civil power, and no 
soldier shall, in time of peace, be quartered in any house without the 
consent of the owner. 

Gambling is forbidden under heavy penalty. 

Any person convicted of giving or taking a bribe, is forever dis- 
qualified from holding office. 

Grand jurors are drawn from the body of the people, and must be 
experienced, intelligent and upright men. Traverse jurors are drawn 
in the same way, and must be intelligent and upright men. 

The laws of the State protect laborers on buildings, streets, roads, 
railroads, canals and other similar works, against the failure of con- 
tractors and sub-contractors to pay their current wages when due. and 
make the corporation, company or individual for whose benefit the 
work is done, responsible for their ultimate payment. 

WAGES ON LOUISIANA SUGAR PLANTATION. 

9 month's labor (234 days) at 75 cents per day $175.50 

3 month's labor (73 days) at $1.50 per day 1 17.00 

12 month's rations at 12* cents per day 45.00 

12 month's rent of cabin 25.00 

12 month's fuel 10.00 

12 month's rent of garden plot 5.00 

Total wages of laborer one year $378,10 

OX LOUISIANA COTTON PLANTATION. 

12 mouth's labor at $15.00 per month $180.00 

12 month's rations, fuel, cabin and garden rent 85.60 

Total wages of laborer one 3-ear $265 .60 

COMMON LABORERS WAGES AT THE NOKTH. 

313 days' labor at $1.10 per day $344.30 

Deducting house rent $ 75 . 00 

Deducting fuel 25.00 

Deducting food 100.00 200.00 

Net wages of laborer one year $144.30 

It will be seen that the money realized by the laborer on the Louis- 
iana sugar plantation, amounts to the sum of $292.50, and on the cot- 
ton plantation, to $180.00. To each of these amounts shonM be added 



MINERAL BE SOURCES. 49 



$85.60, the value of necessaries furnished the laborer without charge. 
Under the tenant system which prevails generally in the cotton region, 
and is extending also to the sugar plantations, the amount received by 
the industrious laborer is even greater. Besides the pecuniary advan- 
tages, the climatic advantage, reduces the cost of food and clothing 
far below what these items must cost the farm laborer of the North. 

MINEEAL KESOUEOES OF LOUISIANA. 

Very little is known of the geology of Louisiana. A complete 
survey has never been made. Black marble has been found in 
St. Landry parish, and a quarry of white marble in Winn, and 
iron all over North Louisiana. 

Dr. Joseph Jones makes the following report of his personal 
observations : 

The cretaceous tertiary and post tertiary are the only formations 
which appear in Louisiana. 

The cretaceous strata appears in a very few isolated outcrops in St. 
Landry and Winn parishes, and has been pierced in several localities 
in boring artesian wells. 

The tertiary forms the basis of the upland region of the State. 

The post tertiary forms almost everywhere the surface, and is of the 
greatest practical importance to the agriculturist. 

The cretaceous strata probably underlies the whole State, rising 
nearer the surface than elsewhere in Winn parish, Chichot and Petit 
Ause. 

Cretaceous limestone, of good quality for burning into lime, and of 
sufficient hardness to be used as a building stone, outcrops in St. Lan- 
dry, about seven miles west of Chicot, and upon several points upon 
lower Saline Bayou. 

The cretaceous strata have been penetrated in boring artesian wells 
and Drake's salt works on Bayou Saline, King's in Castor, and the sul- 
phur well in Calcasieu. 

SULPHUR AND GYPSUM. 

A remarkable deposit of sulphur occurs at Calcasieu. The following 
is a section of the well : 

1. 100 feet blue clay and Livers of -sand. 

2. 178 feet sand. 

3. 10 feet clay rock (soapstone). 

4. 40 feet blue anthiconitic limestone, fissured. 

5. HO feet gray limestone. 

6. 100 feet pure crystalline sulphur. 

7. 137 feet gypsum, with sulphur. 

8. 10 feet sulphur. 

9. 540 feet gypsum, grayish hue. 

The first four strata were all moi-e or less oil bearing. 

The sulphur is of unequaled thickness and purity, and the gypsum 
is also of superior quality. 

This deposit alone is capable of supplying the entiro country with 
sulphur and gypsum. 

From the sulphur may be manufactured sulphuric acid, so important 
in the arts and agriculture. 



50 LOUISIANA. 



SALT. 

Salines occur in various portions of the State, and the rich supplies 
must necessarily excite the attention of capitalists. 

North of Red river, in Bienville and Bossier parishes, there are im- 
mense quantities of saline waters and saliferous deposits, the latter 
being especially found in the beds of ancient lakes. In the low fiat 
beds of these basins, which lie below the ordinary level of the country, 
the wells are sunk to a depth of from twelve to twenty feet, where the 
salt water percolates through the soil and furnishes an abundant daily 
supply, This is boiled in kettles, and each well furnishes from twenty 
to twenty-five bushels of salt per day. _ "" 

In a line beginning about twenty miles west of the mouth of the 
Atchafalaya, on the coast of Belle Isle, and running nearly due east, 
are range (1 five islands, Belle Isle, Cote Blanche, "Week's Island, Petit 
Anse and Miller's Island. 

The islands rise from the low marsh and prairies by which they are 
surrounded, and form mounds of various sizes. The chief of them is 
Petit Anse (Avery's Island), which is 185 feet above the sea-tide level, 
and contains an immense deposit of common sail. Petit Anse is situ- 
ated in Bayou Petit Anse, six miles from the north shore of Vermilion 
Bay, which is an arm of the Gulf. It is fifteen miles to the mouth of 
that bay, where there is a fine land-locked harbor of eight feet depth. 

The following are the general results of my chemical analysis of 
Louisiana rock salt : Louisiana rock salt presents the form, appear- 
ance, and optical properties of pure chloride of sodium. The large 
crystalline masses are so perfectly transparent, free from all extraneous 
matter, and uniform in their structure, and density, that they would be 
suitable in all respects for the most delicate philosophical experiments 
upon the transmission of light through different media. 

The samples of Louisiana salt submitted to analysis, as well as the 
largest masses, weighing several tons, are the purest and finest sam- 
ples of rock salt that have ever come under my observation. 
• One hundred grains Louisiana rock salt yields upon analysis : 

Chloride of sodium 99.(117 

Sulphate of lime 0.318 

Sulphate of magnesia 0.062 

Moisture (dried at 300 degree) 0.09:; 

The Louisiana rock salt contains less than one half of one per cent. 
(0.473) of those substances which may be considered as foreign, viz: 
moisture and sulphates of lime and magnesia, which are found in 
greater or less quantities, according to their purity, in almost all sam- 
ples of salt. 

The absence of both chloride of calcium and chloride of magnesium 
is important, as these salts abstract moisture readily from the atmos- 
phere; and when existing even to a limited extent in salt, impair more 
or less its value by rendering it more hydroscopic. Meats cured with 
salt abounding with the chloride of calcium are more prone to absorb 
moisture from the atmosphere. 

PETROLEUM. 

The oil springs of the Louisiana Petroleum Coal Oil Company are 
situated in Calcasieu parish, about sixty miles from the coast. The ' 
oil spring contains large masses of asphaltum, which were formed by 
the oil becoming inspissated. Carburetted hydrogen 1 gas passes out of 



TEE W ATKINS EUKCEASE. 51 



the springs in a forcible and continuous stream, and when conducted 
in tubes can be employed for illuminating and heating purposes. 

It is supposed that petroleum underlies this section of country, and 
that in the hands of experienced engineers, quantities of this valuable 
material will be obtained. 

COAL. 

Lignite deposits of various degrees of purity and value underlie 
nearly the whole upland country, from the Sabine to the Ouachita 
rivers. The coal makes an excellent fuel and has been used in Shreve- 
port. 

PEAT. 

Valuable deposits of peat are found in many places near the coast, 
and will, when reached by railroads, furnish huge supplies of fuel. 

ikon. 

Iron ore of good quality is scattered in immense quantities over an 
extensive surface of Louisiana. South of Red river, irou ore is (bund 
from Ouachita to Badiau river, and from the Arkansas line it extends 
nearly to lied river; south of this it appears in Oe Soto, Natchitoches, 
Rapides and Sabine. Bienville parish is singularly rich in iron ore. 
Lime and inexhaustible forests of pine and oak', from which the 
necessary ilux and charcoal may be obtained, accompany the beds of 
iron ore. 

GYPSUM. 

This valuable fertilizing material is found in large quantities in the 
saline basins of North Louisiana, and the fertilizing properties of the 
waters of Red river, have been justly attributed to the vast stores of 
this material, washed down by its numerous tributaries. 

We might also enumerate marls, and pigments, and clavs of fine 
quality, and the nitrate and carbonate of soda amongst the mineral 
resources of Louisiana. 



THE W ATKINS PUBCLIASE. 

About one and a quarter million of acres of land in South- 
west Louisiana have been bought by a syndicate represented by 
Mr. J. B. Watkius. 

The Watkius purchase comprises some of the finest lands in 
Cameron, Vermilion and Calcasieu parishes, and several 
thousand acres of the reclaimed lands have this year been 
seeded to rice. Florida, famed for its orange groves, has very 
few acres within her borders that can compare favorably with 
the orange lands of the Watkins purchase. 

Mr. Watkius makes the following report: 

"The large body of sea-marsh land in Southwest Louisiana, 
extending along the coast from Sabine lake eastward to Ver- 
milion Bay, a distance of 120 miles, and inland for from 15 to 30 



52 LOUISIANA. 



miles, has been almost unknown in the past. From this entire 
tract of land tbe waters of tbe gulf Lave gradually receded,. 
tbe sediment from overflows and the decay of tbe very dense 
vegetable growth have gradually raised this land until it is now 
above the natural level of the gulf, and the soil thus formed is 
not surpassed for fertility by any land in tbe world, being a very 
black vegetable mold, from one to six feet in depth. The sub- 
soil is a tough, waxy blue clay, well adapted to prevent any 
leakage. Within this extensive level tract, and east of it, sur- 
rounded by similar marsh, are rather abrupt elevations of laud, 
from eight to sixty feet higher than the surrounding country. 
These were once islands in the sea and are still called islands — 
the higher ones mountains. These have for many years been 
inhabited, and contain now the larger portion of the settlers of 
this region of country. These islands are. very fertile and par- 
ticularly adapted to the growth of oranges, tigs and other trop- 
ical fruits. 

Sabine lake and river, navigable for 300 miles, form the west- 
ern boundary. Thirty miles east of the Sabine are the Calcasieu 
lake and river, flowing in the same general course, navigable 
for 100 miles from the gulf. Thirty miles still further east are the 
Mermen tau lake and river, navigable for 60 miles. Forty miles 
east again is the Vermilion river, flowing in the same direction. 
These rivers all have their source south of the Red river water 
shed, which extends from Northern Texas, in a south-east di- 
rection to the gulf, at a point west of the Mississippi delta, 10O 
miles from New Orleans. This region is thus absolutely pro- 
tected from the floods of the Mississippi river and its tributaries. 
The four rivers named, which pass through this region having 
their sources in, and courses through, a flat country, have a 
gradual and moderate rise and fall, on account of rain storms. 

The four principal lakes in this region — Sabine, Calcasieu, 
Mermentau and White — are nearly equidistant from each other 
and nearly on a line with the gulf coast, and are also of nearly 
equal area, the four embracing about 3G0 square miles. There 
are numerous other smaller lakes within the borders of this 
tract of land. White lake is so named on account of the ap- 



TEE W ATKINS FUECEA.SE. 53 

pearance of the bottom, which consists entirely of sea shells. 
The bottom, together with the numerous fish which abound, can 
be distinctly seen through the very clear water. 

At places along the course of the streams and around the 
lakes, and especially along a considerable portion of the gulf 
•coast, there is a natural levee. This levee, along the coast, ex- 
tends eastward from Sabine lake, a distance of 70 miles. It is 
from a quarter of a mile to two miles wide and of sufficient 
height to resist successfully the highest storm tides, except at 
two places for a few miles each. These are at and adjacent to 
the mouth of the Calcasieu and Mermentau rivers. 

This tract of land is the base of a triangularly-shaped region 
of prairie and prairie marsh, with dense forests on both sides — 
to the northeast and the northwest, the apex being 50 miles 
north of the gulf coast and the open base 120 miles along the 
eoast, the result is a climate in this region peculiarly delightful 
and healthful, tempered, as it is, by the sea breezes. The ther- 
mometer (Fahrenheit) during the last six years, ranging from 
27° in the coldest in the winter, to 94° the warmest in the 
summer. 

In such a climate and with such a soil, the most abundant 
growth of vegetation is found. In the swamp land, the grass 
remains green 'the entire year, and because of this and the very 
mild climate, it is an excellent grazing country. In its present 
natural condition, thousands of cattle roam at will without any 
attention being bestowed upon them. 

When I saw this country and studied its natural features, I 
decided that capital could be profitably invested in its reclama- 
tion and preparation for successful settlement and cultivation. 
I, therefore, purchased from the State and United States Govern- 
ments, all of the vacant lands within limits that I fixed, ex- 
tending to thirty miles inland. 

Our plan of reclamation is to build dykes along the gulf, 
rivers, lakes and bayous, of sufficient height and strength to 
prevent overflow of each in the event of floods from rain and 
storm tides, and in this, we will be materially assisted by the 
natural levees found in many places along these waters. We cut 
parallel to each other and half a mile apart, canals eighteen feet 
wide and six feet deep. At right angles with these, at intervals 
-of two and a half miles, we cut larger canals, thus forming the 



54 LOUISIANA. 



land into oblong blocks half a mile by two and a half miles, 
each containing 800 acres. Across these blocks, at proper in- 
tervals, we cut lateral ditches 30 inches deep by 8 inches wide 
at the bottom, flared to 30 inches wide at the top. 
. The canals are cut, the levees funned, and the dykes are, to a 
considerable extent, built by the use of powerful floating steam 
dredges. The smaller ditches are cut by ditchers propelled by 
steam power, passing through but once, at the rate of one and 
a halt miles per hour. At proper localities, we erect automatic 
flood-gates, by means of which we control the stage of water in 
the canals, and the necessary volume of water is regulated to 
some extent by the ebb and flow of the tide. This is supple- 
mented by the use of powerful wind pumps, and when the 
natural elements will not accomplish the work we readily move 
upou the canals, to the spot our ditching, plowing and culti- 
vating engines and attach them to pumps. Thus arranged, 
with control of the water, these blocks of land are in condition 
for the most successful rice culture. Rice may be planted any 
time from February to June, very much the same as wheat and 
upon ground similarly prepared. When it has reached a growth 
two inches high, water is let in upon it and the ground gradu- 
ally flooded j care being had not to cover any of the plants with 
the water. The land is kept flooded sufficiently to kill all the 
grass aud weeds, uutil the rice is about 18 inches high. It then 
has sufficient start to choke down any foreign growth and the 
water may be drawn off and the ground allowed to become dry 
and firm for harvest time, which may extend over several 
months, according to the times the seed was sown. Rice is 
harvested and threshed in the same manner and with about the 
same kind of machinery as used for wheat. 

Our operations were begun in December, 1882, and we have 
since then built and have in use machinery as follows: Three 
steam dredges, with a capacity of a mile of 6 by 18 feet canal 
per month each; two ditchers; four traction engines, which 
propel the ditchers, plows, cultivators, sowers, reapers, etc. • 
thirty-two plows in gangs, having a capacity of 70 acres per 
day; two steamboats, and nine auxiliary boats, barges, quarter 
boats, etc. 



THE GULF COAST. 55 

THE GULF COAST. 

The Const line of Louisiana extends from Texas on the west 
at the mouth of the Sabine river, to Mississippi on the east at 
the mouth of Pearl river. 

Locket says : 

It may be divided into two distinct sections, differing from each 
other in many characteristic respects. 

The first or eastern division lies between Cat Island, near the mouth 
of Pearl river and Atchafalaya bayou, the southwest. These two 
points are the most easterly and most westerly limits respectively 
of the great delta of the Mississippi. The waters of the Mississippi 
formerly found their way through Manchac bayou, Lake Maurepas, 
Lake Pontehartraiu and the Rigolets into Lake Borgne, and thence 
into Mississippi Sound, at the entrance of which is Cat Island. These 
waters still flow into Atchafalaya Bay through the river of the same 
name. All this part of the coast is extremely irregular, indented with 
numerous bays, cut up by thousands of lakes and bayous into a laby- 
ryuth of peninsulas and islands which it is almost impossible to 
represent on a map of the scale I have adopted. The general shape of 
this part of the coast is the arc of a circle, convex outwards. The 
radius of this circle is about sixty-five geographical miles, and its 
centre is a few miles to the westward of the southwest corner of Lake 
Pontchartrain. This circle crosses the narrow neck of land which 
makes the lower delta, near Forts Jackson and St. Philip. The whole 
length of the arc, excluding the lower delta, is one hundred and 
seventy miles. There is a remarkable tendency of the islands along 
this circle to form themselves into groups, convex towards the Guli', 
and each island partakes of the same shape. 

Among the thousand islands along this Coast, is the paradise 
of the sportsman. 

Fish and water-fowl abound in countless thousands. 

The professional hunters and fishermen have built their villages 
upon these islands and live well with little exertion. Their 
families are reared without the aid of physicians and other 
adjuncts of civilization. Here are found the famous Bayou 
Cook and Bayou Chalon oysters — sea turtle and crabs. The 
water is thick with shoals of shrimp. 

The fame of these lovely islands, shaded with live oak, 
orange and banana, with its inlets overflowing with the luscious 
denizens of the sea, has long since gone out to the farthest ends 
of the earth. 

Bepresentatives from almost every nation, are here to share 
in this wondrous prodigality of nature, without money and 
without price. 



56 LOUISIANA. 



The heathen Chinee is drying the shrimp by the million. The 
Malays and Manilla men sell their harvest of the gulf (shrimp 
and the finest varieties of fish) for three cents a pound. The 
Austrians monopolize some of the finest locations for plant 
oysters. The French and Spaniards have their orange groves, 
villages, boats and nets and sail up the Barataria Bayou to 
New Orleans with their products. 

This lovely bayou leads into Barataria Bay, which is studded 
with villages of those primitive people who live on the fatness 
of the land and water. 

Many of the houses are built of a frame work of timber with 
thatched roof and sides of latanier, which grows in the adjacent 
low lands. 

Grand Pass affords deep water passage from Barataria Bay 
into the Gulf of Mexico. On the east is the United States 
light house and Fort Livingston ; on the west is 

GRAND ISLE. 

This beautiful island, with only a local celebrity, has long been 
a resort for the families of Louisiana planters during the sum- 
mer. 

It is ten miles long and over a mile in width, with an elevation 
of about 9 feet above the sea-level. It faces the gulf with a 
smooth beach of hard, white sand. Along the crest of the 
island is a grove of shraggy old live oaks, two hundred yards 
wide and about five miles long. These trees were old and rugged 
when the island was the rendezvous of the pirate Lafitte, and 
have probably weathered a thousand storms. On the land side 
of this magnificent grove of live oaks are the orange trees of 
the small proprietors, forming a continuous orchard to the 
end of the island. 

Here the fragrant guava, so delicate that it will not bear 
transportation, grows to perfection. Other tropical fruits grow 
and flourish, and yet the heat is never so great as in New Or- 
leans, fifty miles to the north. 

The surf here is not excelled in America. It comes curling in 
at regular intervals, in one unbroken wall of foam-crested water, : 
niiles in length. 



LOUISIANA MANUFACTURES. 57 

The women and children enter the surf without fear or 
danger. 

The dreadful undertow, which often causes accidents at other 
surf bathing resorts, is entirely absent on the island beach. A 
second bar, one hundred and fifty yards out, breaks its force 
from the bathers. The deepest water inside this bar is five and 
a half feet. Bathing is good from May till October inclusive* 
This resort, so little known abroad, is the Long Branch of the 
South. 

The present hotel and bath-houses afford accommodations to 
about five hundred people, who reach here by steamboat from 
New Orleans, but when communication by rail with New Orleans 
shall have been established, it will require numerous and exten- 
sive structures to care for the thousands who will flock here 
each year in search of health and pleasure. 

Grand Pass will be the outlet for the proposed ship canal from 
New Orleans. This coast offers many and varied inducements 
for the investment of capital. 

LOUISIANA MANUFACTURES. 

In manufacturing, New Orleans is making steady progress 
and has recently added a number of new establishments as fol- 
lows: One new cotton mill, 2 breweries, 2 rice-mills, 2 sugar 
refineries, 13 foundries, 5 book binderies, 25 shoe manufactories, 
1 box factory, 39 bakeries, 5 brick yards, 19 cooperages, 2 manu- 
factories of candy, 4 saw mills, 5 sash, blind and door factories, 
1 tile factory and 6 tobacco factories. 

This is an agricultural State, and, although well adapted in 
every way to manufacture, but few manufacturing enterprises 
are undertaken, except such as are necessary to prepare the 
raw product for market. 

There are now in operation within the State over 2000 manu- 
facturing establishments. Of this number, only six are cotton 
mills. 

Sugar is manufactured on every sugar plantation^ and sugar 
refineries are now generally introduced throughout the State. 
The manufacture of hogsheads and barrels, in which to market 
.sugar and molasses, requires a cooper shop on every place. 



5S LOUISIANA. 



After picking, cotton is ginned and baled before it is shipped. 
to market. 

Tobacco is manufactured, (made into carrots) on the plantation;. 

Rice is generally threshed, sacked and shipped to New 
Orleans, where it is milled. 

Many plantations have grist mills, and there are large num- 
bers of public gins and mills in different parts of the State, run 
by steam or water power. 

Much higher prices are paid in this State for all manufactured 
articles than in the North, notwithstanding the facilities for 
manufacturing here. The people here are not inclined to enter- 
prises, that take them out of the grooves in which they and 
their fathers have always moved. 

With more magnificent forest of timber than any other State, 
there are few saw mills with a capacity greater than the local 
demand for lumber. 

Hand-books of older States are filled with statistics, showing 
every field of labor operated to its fullest extent. Every mill 
site occupied, every acre of arable land tilled, every mine 
opened and all raw material manufactured. 

Here, with e^ery advantage of soil, climate, material and 
labor, the pioneers of manufacture have only proceeded far 
enough to demonstrate the success that will follow capital in 
any enterprise in which it will embark. 



NEW ORLEANS MANUFACTURES. 
There are only two cotton mills. Millions of capital could be 
profitably invested in this industry. 

IRON FOUNDRIES AND* MACHINE SHOPS. 

The great demand for heavy castings and sugar machinery 
throughout the State test to their full capacity the half dozen 
foundries in New Orleans. There is room for more. 
NEW ORLEANS MANUFACTORIES. 

There are two manufactories of artificial ice in New Orleans 
making yearly more than 25,000 tons of ice, which is consumed 
in the city. The demand for artificial ice is greater than the 
s ipply, and more factories are needed. This ice sells at whole- 
sale for $12 a ton. 



NEW ORLEANS MANUFACTURES. 59 

THE BOX FACTORIES 

supply Texas, Mississippi, Louisiana, Alabama and Tennessee 
with paper and wooden boxes, and almost the entire West draws 
its supply of Spanish cedar for cigar boxes from this market. 

BRICK YARDS. 

There are seven brick yards in and around New Orleans. 

BROOMS AND BRUSHES. 

The manufacture of brooms and brushes employs about 100 
persons, principally boys. 

THE CANNING BUSINESS. 
Canning of fruits and shrimp gives employment to only about 
200 persons. Two thousand people could be profitably employed 
in canning of fruits, vegetables, oysters and fish. 

CIGARS AND TOBACCO. 

The manufacture of cigars and tobacco employs about 1500 
persons in New Orleans, many of whom are women and girls. 
It is estimated that the products of this business are near one 
and a quarter million of dollars. 

COTTON SEED OIL MILLS. 

These factories employ nearly 2000 hands, and yield an annual 
product of about three million dollars. These mills have formed 
an association which monopolizes the business. They pay very 
little for the seed and their profits are enormous. The business 
invites capital and competition. 

LAGER BEER. 

There are two large breweries in New Orleans, that are said to 
make better beer than any of the famous Northern and Western 
breweries. It is more palatable, purer ani is rapidly super- 
ceding imported beer. 

Capital invested iu a brewery would pay a large per cent. 

FURNITURE. 

Only a few small shops are making furniture here. A large 
factor^' could utilize the fine native wood and sell to the local 
trade, at great advantage. 

FLOURIXG MILLS. 

There are several small mills in New Orleans. This business 
offers inducements to capitalists. 



60 LOUISIANA. 



LEATHER AND HARNESS. 

The exemption of this business from taxation for a period of 
ten years by the constitution of 1879 has given it an impetus. 
The local trade is supplied and large shipments are made to 
Texas, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia and Tennessee. 

MEN'S CLOTHING. 

The manufacture of men's clothing gives employment to more 
than 1000 persons, turning out over one million dollar's worth 
of clothing, and in addition to local trade supplying the contigu- 
ous States. 

MOSS GINNIXG. 

There are six moss ginneries in and around New Orleans, 
yielding a product of nearly ten million pounds of moss. This 
is a growing industry, and offers inducements to small as well 
as large capitalists. Not one-hundredth part of the annual 
moss crop is saved. 

SOAP. 

New Orleans has always enjoyed a large soap trade, due to 
the discovery of the use of cotton seed oil in the manufacture 
of soap. Tin's makes the very finest grades of toilet and castile 
soap. New Orleans supplies all the neighboring States — Ala- 
bama, Mississippi, Florida and Texas, and has lately been ship- 
ping extensively to Mexico. This industry gives employment 
to some 100 hands and turns out annually, products to the value 
of $250,000. 

RICE CLEANING. 

The rice factories of this city are a natural result of the in- 
creased cultivation of rice in Louisiana. Nearly the entire crop 
is sent to this city in rough condition and has to be cleaned 
here. If the rice is broken in cleaning, it is sold to the brewers, 
who use it in. making beer. 

MISCELLANEOUS MANUFACTURING INDUSTRIES. 

Among the smaller manufacturing industries in New Orleans, 
of which only a passing mention can be made, are: Bags — these 
are mainly for the cotton seed, rough rice and similar bulky 
articles; bread products, mostly local bakeries; carriages and 
wagons; earthenware; iron and boilers, mattresses; mineral 
water; perfumery; refrigerators; sawmills and sash factories j 
..sugar refining ; vermicelli; willow ware. 



COTTON MANUFACTURE. 61 

The handling of the crop of cotton, sugar, rice and grain and 
the annual supply of coal which come to this market during the 
fall and winter, employs thousands of laborers who are without 
work during the spring and summer. 

This condition of things throws upon the market for about 

half the year, a large number of operatives who might be 

utilized to great advantage in manufacturing in this city. 

THE CAPACITY OF NEW ORLEANS FOR COTTON 

MANUFACTURE. 

Col. W. M. Burwell, chairman of a committee appointed by the 
Chamber of Commerce to report on this subject made a full and com- 
prehensive report, of which the following is a summary. 

1. That the staple of cotton offered in this market or in that of 
Texas, will grade 34 per cent better for strength, length and weight 
than any other cottons for the manufacture of sheetings, shirtings and 
yarns suitable for the warp of home-made cotton cloths. 

2. That the stock of this cotton on hand in New Orleans, is suffi- 
cient to enable the spinner to supply his wants for the greater part of 
the year without the cost of insurance and interest, the variation of 
price or the speculation of futures. 

3. That the average climatic temperature is perfectly adapted to 
the manufacture of textile goods. 

4. That the elements of food, clothing and rents, which constitute 
the cost of operative labor, are or may be furnished on as moderate 
terms as hi any other part of the United States. 

5. That operative labor capable of rapid instruction in cotton spin- 
ning abounds in this city, and can be relied upon to work all the year 
round. 

6. That motive power can be supplied from coal at less than the 
average prices paid by Eastern mills off the line of water delivery, and 
at rates that will justify the investment of capital in milling property. 

7. That real estate convenient to water delivery of stock and fuel 
abounds in this city, in the midst of operative population and at 
moderate prices. 

8. That the revenue tax imposed by the United States upon im- 
ported cotton manufactures, with the exemption from State taxation 
upon buildings and machinery employed in the manufacture of cotton, 
tends to encourage such an investment. 

9. That our machine shops, with complete and modern machinery, 
domonstiate the ability of New Orleans to repair any part of a cotton 
mill, while the facilities of intercourse with the North will enable the 
cotton spinner to renew or replace any disabled part of the machinery. 

10. That the amount of tonnage employed in the exportation of our 
cotton will be greatly reduced by the compression of the raw cotton 
into yarns and cloths. 

This report with the following resolutions was adopted by the Cham- 
ber of Commerce of New Orleans. 

Besolved, That the city of New Orleans should add to her resources 
of the factorage, purchase and sale of commodities, the manufacture of 
raw materials. 



^62 LOUISIANA. 



Resolved, That the inducements to the manufacture of cotton on the 
spot appear to tins Chamber sufficient to justify investment therein by 
any capitalist desiring- safe and satisfactory returns, or by any prop- 
erty owner seeking the advancement of his own interest or the pros- 
perity of the city. 

LOUISIANA RAILROADS. 

The following is a list of the railroads in the State. No mention i9 
made of numerous projected lines. 

Baton Rouge, Grosse Tete and Opelousas ; from Port Allen to Lom- 
bard, 26 miles in State. To be extended to Opelousas. 

Chicago. St. Louis and New Orleans ; from New Orleans to Cairo, 
111., 571 miles, 93 miles in State. 

Clinton and Port Hudson ; from Clinton to Port Hudson, 21£ miles. 

Louisiana Western ; from Vermilionville to Orange. Texas, 112 miles, 
106 in State. 

Morgan's Louisiana and Texas ; from New Orleans to Alexandria, 
with blanches to Houma, Thibodaux, St. Martinsville and Avery's Salt 
Mine, 265 miles. 

New Orleans and Mobile (now leased to the Louisville and Nashville). 
Length of road, 141 miles, .'33 in State. 

New Orleans Pacific (controlled by the Texas Pacific) ; from New Or- 
leans to Shreveport and branch to Baton Rouge, 335 miles, all in 
State. 

Red River and Texas ; from Yidalia west, 30 miles. 

Pontchartrain Railroad, from New Orleans to Lake, 7 miles. 

New Orleans and Mississippi Valley; from New Orleans to Memphis 
391 miles; completed in the State, 90 miles. 

Vicksburg, Shreveport and Pacific ; from Delta to Monroe, to be 
continued to Shreveport. Length of road built, 110 miles; to be. built, 
38 miles, and grading nearly completed, all in State. 

West Feliciana; from Bayou Sara to Woodville, Miss. Length of 
road, 27| miles, 20 miles in State. 

Texas Pacific (Shreveport Branch), from Marshall, Texas, to Shreve- 
port. Length of road in State, 17f miles. 

New Orleans and Northeastern; New Orleans to Meridian, 196 miles, 
43 in State. 

Mississippi, Terre aux Bceufs and Lake Railroad, from New Orleans 
to Lake Borgne, 28 miles. 
* Total miles of railroad in State, 1247J. 



RAILWAY SYSTEM TRIBUTARY TO NEW ORLEANS. 

THE GREAT JACKSON RAILROAD 

is tributary to New Orleans for a distance of 550 miles, and with its 
branches and Southern connections, freights to this city the various 
products of an area of territory of not less than 60,000 square miles. 

It runs from New Orleans through the parishes of Jefferson, St. 
Charles, St. John and Tangipahoa. In this parish it enters the long- 
leaf pine hills, famous for its magnificent timber, and as a resort for 
persons with weak lungs. From this parish it passes into Mississippi, 
and thence to Tennessee, making extensive connections with other 
lines, with the aid of which it transports to New Orleans annually 
nearly half a million bales of cotton. 



RAILWAY SYSTEM. ■ 63 



THE LOUISVILLE AND NASHVILLE RAILROAD. 

This grand trunk line, and the Mobile and Ohio railroad and their 
numerous branches and connections, drain an area of territory of over 
100,000 square miles. 

This country to a great degree is tributary to New Orleans, to which 
point a large portion of the agricultural products of the entire region 
are freighted. 

This important railroad system taps the four States of Mississippi, 
Alabama, Tennessee and Kentucky, and also a small portion of North- 
eastern Louisiana, and through its connections unites with the systems 
of Florida, Georgia, the Caroliuas and Virginia. 

Along the line of the 

MOBILE AND NEW ORLEANS DIVISION 

of the Louisville and Nashville Railroad are situated a number of very 
pretty watering places, which are visited every year by citizens of ail 
portions of the State, but particularly by those of New Orleans. From 
Bay St. Louis to Ocean Springs it is one uninterrupted line of beautiful 
summer residences. Large sums have been expended in beautifying 
these, and it is estimated that at least $10,000,000 has been spent in 
the last twenty years on the farms, villas and orchards that line Mis- 
sissippi sound. 

THE MORGAN LOUISIANA AND TEXAS RAILROAD. 

The Morgan interest is a most important factor in the great railway 
system that connects the Crescent City with the western part of this 
State and with the southern, central and eastern portions of Texas ; 
by the Iron Mountain and the Texas Pacific with that vast system that 
centres at St. Louis ; by the Galveston, Harrisbnrg and San Antonio 
Road with the Southern continuation of the International, which 
crosses the frontier at Laredo and connects with the Palmer-Sullivan 
Roads, that drain the immeuse eastern-central portion of the Republic 
of Mexico. 

THE LOUISIANA AND TEXAS RAILROAD 

is a first-class and abundantly equipped road. It possesses admiral 
terminal facilities. At Algiers its river front is 2000 feet, and is wharfed, 
, shedded over and inclosed, affording berths for three large ships to 
simultaneously receive and discharge cargoes. It has a system of 
tracks, which enables loaded and empty cars to be put immediately 
along side the shipping ; a modern and powerful compress from which 
cotton is trucked directly to the ship ; vast steam working machinery 
whereby ships are discharged, and what, in the near future, will be 
the desideratum, room for grain elevators of the largest size, with an 
entire system of tracks contiguous to them. Its transfer facilities are 
on a magnificent footing. The transfer boats can handle 600 or 700 
cars per day. In New Orleans the depots at Elysian Fields, that at 
St. Ann street, and the vast grounds aud buildings at Poydras street, 
afford room »f or the admission of an unlimited amount of freight. 

The company's buildings, work and machinery are perhaps the 
largest in this section of the country, and enable it to expeditiously 
perform the varied work required by its rail and shipping interests. 

FROM ALGIERS TO MORGAN CITY 

the distance is eighty miles. The route lies along the southern portion 
of the State, and taps the country for some forty miles north of the- 



64 . LOUISIANA. 



track, and south to the shores washed by the Mexican Gulf. At Mor- 
gan city a fine bridge spans Berwick's bay. The route from Algiers to 
Morgan City, for some miles to the former point, is through beautiful 
and flourishing sugar and rice plantations, which alternate with vast 
swamps, where cypress trees of huge dimensions are at their roots cov- 
ered with semi-stagnant water several months in the year. Numerous 
small farmers have pre-empted State and Government land, and are 
successfully engaged in husbandry, raising crops of sugar, rice, corn 
and garden truck along this line. They also collect Spanish moss from, 
the cypress trees in the swamps. 

FKOM BERWICK CITY TO LAFAYETTE, 

a distance of sixty-four miles, the line passes through a magnificent 
fanning country, where sugar, cotton and oranges are produced in. 
great abundance. 

At Lafayette the road branches off 

IN AN ALMOST NORTHERLY DIRECTION 

to Alexandria on the Red river. The region through which this branch 
passes, is one of the most fertile districts iu the State, and along the 
entire line of the track presents the appearance of a long, continuous 
plantation. 

From the terminus at Lafayette, the Morgan interest connects with 

THE LOUISIANA WESTERN ROAD, 

which forms the eastern end of the vast Huntington system, and 
crosses the southern limits of Texas, and through its connections with 
the Texas Central — five eighths of which line is owned by the Morgan 
Company— drains the northern and central portions of the Lone Star 
State. 

The New Orleans and Texas line, of the Morgan interest, drains an 
extent of country comprising at least 18,000 square miles of territory, 
entirely within the limits of the State of Louisiana. 

THE HUNTINGTON SYSTEM 

at San Antonio, controls the Galveston, Harrisburg and San Antonio 
line to Houston, also the Texas and New Orleans, Louisiana Western 
to Lafayette, thus linking El Paso and San Antonio with New Mexico 
and Arizona and with the seaport of New San Diego, in Southern 
California. The great Huntington system will tap the entire south- 
western frontier of the United States and the northwestern of Mexico. 
Morgan's Louisiana and Texas Railroad, the Louisiana Western, the 
Texas and New Orleans and the Galveston, Harrisburg and San An- 
tonio Railroad, are now under one management called the 

SOUTHERN PACIFIC COMPANY ATLANTIC SYSTEM, 

with A. C. Hutchinson, General Manager, and J. G. Scliriever, Traffic 
Manager. The mileage from New Orleans to El Paso is 1209 miles. 

Morgan's Line Steamships connects with the railroad system, leaving 
New York every Tuesday aud Saturday, p. in., and leaving New 
Orleans every Wednesday and Saturday a. m. These are the finest 
ships built and admirably adapted to freight. 



BA IL WAY S YSTEM. 65 

THE NEW ORLEANS PACIFIC RAILROAD AND THE GREAT 
SOUTH WESTERN "GOULD SYSTEM." 

The vast railroad system, which already possesses several thousand 
miles, and even still longer and more numerous lines projected, will 
drain an area of territory comprised of many hundreds of thousands 
of square miles. Its extreme termini are the C.ty of Mexico, a thou- 
sand miles south of the frontier town of Laredo; New San Diego, on 
the southwestern coast, and San Francisco, on the central coast of 
California; St. Louis and the other great commercial centres of the 
West and the Mississippi Valley ; Denver, Col., by the Forth Worth 
and Denver Railroad, and with projected lines that are eventually 
de fined to form one of the grandest railroad systems in the world and 
which will reticulate the immense regions of the West and Southwest 
in all directions. Of this vast railroad system New Orleans will be 
the southern outlet, and the commercial depot at which will centre all 
the various products of this wide extended territory, destined for 
domestic consumption and for shipment to foreign markets 4 . 

The line along which all this immense amount of freight will be 
brought to New Orleans, is the 

NEW ORLEANS PACIFIC. 

That portion of the line from New Orleans to Donaldsonville 
closely follows the Mississippi river until within a short distance south 
of Baton Rouge, where it branches oft to the southwest. 

The route lies through several of our most fertile parishes, over 
numerous cane, rice and corn fields, while the view presented to the 
traveler, is a long vista of agricultural prosperity. At this station the 
road crosses the Bayou Lafourche, along whose banks are situated 
several of the most important plantations in the State. The soil in 
this region is exceedingly fertile and yields in some places as high as 
two hogsheads of sugar per acre. 

FROM DONALDSONVILLE TO ALEXANDRIA 

the road passes through a grand cane and cotton country, and will 
drain a great extent of territory which has hitherto been tributary to 
the Red river and the Mississippi. At Rosedale, about forty-five miles 
above Donaldsonville, the Gros Tete Company has constructed a branch 
road from Baton Rouge to the trunk line, which connects the latter 
with West Baton Rouge. 

FROM ALEXANDRIA TO SHREVEPORT, 

a distance of 130 miles, the route lies through a remarkably rich and 
fertile country, which produces a large quantity of sugar and cotton. 
A branch road twelve miles in length, aud which runs south along a 
little bayou, will connect the trunk line with the thriving town of 
Natchitoches. At Pleasant Hill, a forest composed of various kinds of 
hard wood trees reaches to far beyond the Texas line. This timber is 
valuable for many purposes and bids fair to become an important 
article of traffic. 

AT SHREVEPORT 

this division of this road connects with the Texas Pacific, which passes 
through Lougview and Marshall to Dallas and Forth Worth, Texas, 
and is completed 400 miles west to the latter point. 



66 LOUISIANA. 



This New Orleans division of the Texas Pacific Railroad, from New 
Orleans to Shreveport, which cuts through the very centre of the State 
in a generally northwestern direction, will drain of its varied agricul- 
tural products an area of territory not less than 1000 miles. All this 
country, with its thousands of plantations and farms, its thriving towns 
and villages is tributary to New Orleans. The road has opened to our 
merchants a new and steadily increasing traffic, which will give a 
great and happy impulse to our internal commerce. New Orleans, as 
the only deep water port of the entire Gulf coast, is the commercial 
■depot of all the vast region drained by the Gould system of railroads. 

The New Orleans and Pacific Railroad Company owns many 
thousands of acres of valuable timber and agricultural lands along their 
line, which they dispose of to the settlers ou favorable terms. 

THE LOUISVILLE, NEW ORLEANS AND TEXAS RAILROAD. OR 
" MISSISSIPPI VALLEY ROAD." 

The depot of this road is in the city of New Orleans. The line 
passes along the east hank of tin- Mississippi river through a contin- 
uous field of rice and sugar-cane to Baton Rouge. At this point it 
leaves the river and runs due north through East Baton Rouge and 
Feliciana, intersecting the Clinton and Port, Hudson Railroad. It cou- 
tinuesnorth through Wilkinson county, Mississippi, along the rich river 
counties to Vicksburg, touching the river a few miles below that place. 
AtVicksburg connection is made with roads running north, east and west. 

THE NEW ORLEANS AND NORTHEASTERN RAILROAD 

was completed and opened for business in November, 1883. The road 
enters the city over what is the longest piece of trestle work in the coun- 
try. The trestle along the south shore of lake Pontchartrain is nearly 
fourteen miles long, extending from People's avenue to Point-aux- 
Herbes, where the trestle work", about six miles long, runs in a north- 
easterly direction across the water and into the parish of St. Tammany, 
striking the north shore just east of Bayou Bonfouca. 

The general direction of the road is northeasterly, its terminus being 
Meridau, one hundred and uinety-six miles from New Orleans. With 
the exception of Enterprise, there were no old towns along the line of 
the road; but the rapid building up of towns all along, a feature of 
Southern roads generally, is especially noticeable along the Northeast- 
ern. Among the larger may be mentioned Slidell, Poplarville, Purvis, 
Hattiesburg, Ellisville and Heidelberg. There are many other stations 
from which large amounts of cotton, cattle and other freights go to 
build up quite aii extensive local business for a new road. 

The country along the Northeastern Railroad abounds in the finest 
pine and other timber. There is an abundance of fine grazing lauds 
and the cattle business is a feature of the road. In the parish of St. 
Tammany and along the road through Mississippi, plenty of choice 
farms can be had at very reasonable figures. 

The Northeastern connects at Meridian with the other roads of the 
Queen and Crescent System, which comprises the Alabama Great 
Southern and Cincinnati Southern, the Vicksburg and Meridian, and 
Vicksburge, Shreveport and Pacific, a grand system extending north 
and south from Cincinnati to New Orleans, and east and west from 
Meridian to Shreveport. The important junction points of this system 
are Meridian, Birmingham, Chattanooga and Cincinnati, making con- 
nections for all poiuts North, East and West. On the line of the Ala- 
bama Great S(jjithern are the great coal fields of Alabama, hence the 



NA VMABLE STREAMS. 



67 



management is making every effort to foster the coal business in New 
Orleans, which mast, through this policy and the construction of coal 
-elevatois on the river front, shortly make this city ti coaling station. 

NAVIGABLE STREAMS. 
The following is a list of the navigable waters in the State: 



Streams. 




Head of Navigation. 



Amite River 

Atchafalaya River. . . , 

Marataria Bayou 

* Bartholomew Bayou. 

Histeneau Lake 

Black River 

Bodcau Lake 

1'xeuf River 

Kami' Bayou 

Calcasieu River 

(Jane River 

'Cross Lake 

'Courtableau Bayou. . . 
D'Arhonne Bayou. . . . 

DeGlaise Bayou 

Dclarge Bayou 

Doi'chite Bayou 

Forks of Calcasieu. . . 
Grand Caillou Bayou. 

Lafourche Bayou 

Lacombe Bayou 

Little River 

Louis Bayou ; . 

"Macon Bayou 

Manchac Bayou 

Mennentau Bayou. . . . 
*Mississippi River. . . . 

Natalbany River 

'Ouachita River 

« Pearl River 

Petite An so Bayou . . . 

*Red River 

Rouge Bayou 

Sabine River 

j'eche Bayou 

Tensas River 

Tickfaw River 

Terrebonne Bayou. . . . 
Tangipahoa River. . . . 
Tchefuncta Bayou. . . . 

Vermilion Bayou 

Other streams 



Total. 



11 

132 
60 
25 
36 
50 
29 
20 
(J 
32 
13 

3 IS 
J5 
12 
15 

138 
18 
81 

585 
12 

217 

103 
8 

510 
15 

3S7 
91 

112 
16 
27 
15 
20 
49 

155 



Port Vincent. 

Red River. 

Harvey's Canal. 

Baxter, Ark. 

Minden. 

.Mouth of Ouachita. 

Bellevue. 

Rayville. 



Grand Ecore. 
Jefferson, Texas. 
Washington. 

Farnierville. 
Evergreen. 



Minden. 



Donaldsonville. 
Bayou Lacombe. 
Trinity. 
Bayou Castor. 
Floyd. 
Hope Villa. 
Lake Arthur. 
St. Paul. Minn. 
Springfield. 
Camden, Ark. 
Carthage, Miss. 
Salt Mine, 

Shreveport, State Shoals, 
Texas. 

St. Martinsville. 
Lake Providence. 



Old Landing. 
Pin Hook Bridge. 



3771 



^Portion of narigable stream lying in other States. 



6S 



LOUISIANA. 



MILES OF NAVIGATION IN EACH STATE OF MISSISSIPPI 

VALLEY. 



Miles. 
Louisiana 3,77 i 

Arkansas 2,100 

Mississippi 1,380 

Montana 1,310 

Dakota 1,280 

Illinois 1,270 

Tennessee 1,200 

Kentucky 1,027 

Indiana 1,230 

Iowa 840 

Indian Territory 830 



Miles. 

Minnesota 720 

Wisconsin 060 

Ohio 5G0 

Texas 550 

Nebraska 440 

West Virginia 500 

Pennsylvania 380 

Kansas 240 

Alabama 200 

New York 70 



OCEAN LLNEd EliOM NEW ORLEANS TO OTHER 

PORTS. 
THE MORGAN COASTING STEAMSHIP LINES. 

The Morgan company possesses numerous steamships, which are en- 
gaged in carrying freight and passengers to different points along the 
coast of the United States. These lines are as follows : 

To New York, 

To Galveston, Clinton, Corpus Christi. 

To Iudianola. 

To Brazos de Santiago. 

Also three lines that trade with foreign ports : 

To Havana via Cedar Keys and Key West. 

To Havana from Indianola, Texas. 

To Vera Cruz via Galveston. 

MORGAN'S LINE TO NEW YORK. 

This line comprises some of the finest iron freight steamships in the 
world, which bring on an average weekly about 15,000 barrels pf freight 
for Texas alone, besides that which is destined for this port. They 
leave New York for New Orleans every Tuesday and Saturday, P. M. 
connecting here with Morgan's Railroad. They leave New Orleans 
every Wednesday and Saturday, A. M., arriving in New York in six 
days. These vessels bring assorted cargoes from New York, which are 
distributed at this city and along the gulf coast and the interior of 
Texas. The former by the coast steamers and the latter through the 
medium of the Morgan Railroad. Their outward cargoes to New York 
consist of Southern produce — cotton, sugar, rice, cotton seed cake, mo- 
l&sses etc 

TEXAS LINES OF STEAMERS. 

Several fine iron steamers belonging to this company are engaged in 
the passenger and freight carrying trade between New Orleans, Gal- 
veston, Clinton and Corpus Christi via Morgan City. This line makes 
four trips a week, every alternate trip going further along the coast to 
Corpus Christi. During the winter months the traffic on this route is 
very lively and necessitates the employment of more vessels. Their 
cargoes are assorted goods brought to this port from the North and 
transhipped to the gulf ports by this line, as well as wares of different 
kinds shipped direct from here. 



OCEAN LINES OF STEAMERS. G9 



THE INDIANOLA LINE. 

One Morgan steamer makes regular trips twice a week, carrying 
freight and passengers from Galveston to Indianola. A large portion 
of the freight carried by this vessel comes from New Orleans via the 
Galveston and Clinton line of steamers. The traffic between the Cres- 
cent City and Texas gulf portions is steadily increasing, while the 
various steamers bring valuable return cargoes to Morgan City. A 
great deal of cotton, hides, etc., is shipped from Indianola to this 
port; some of it is transhipped to valley commercial centres and to 
the North. 

THE MORGAN LINE TO VERA CRUZ. 

During the winter, one of the Morgan steamers leaves Morgan City 
for Vera Cruz, via Galveston, every sixteen days. The vessel runs 
directly to Vera Cruz without touching at any of the way Mexican coast 
ports on the voyage. This line receives a small subsidy each trip 
from the Mexican Government for carrying the mail between Vera Cruz 
and Galveston. It brings to this port, via the railroad from Morgan 
City, coffee and other Mexican products, and carries on its outward 
trips assorted cargo, cotton and numerous passengers. 

LINE TO HAVANA. 

During those mouths that no quarantine regulations are enforced at 
New Orleans against the intertropical ports, two tine iron Morgan 
steamers, 1000 tons each, ply between the Crescent City, Cedar Keys, 
Key West and the port of Havana, Cuba. Their outward cargoes are 
principally Western produce, with quantities of Indian corn and other 
kinds of grain. The return cargoes are sugar, cigars, tobacco, melada 
and other products of the island. One steamer per week leaves the 
company's wharf on this route, generally well freighted and with 
numerous passengers. 

LINE TO BRAZOS. 

The steamer Aransas, a fine iron vessel, leaves Morgan City for 
Brazos de Santiago every ten days. This boat carries an assorted cargo 
and connects at Brazos with the railroad, which runs from Point Isabel 
to Brownsville. On the return trip the vessel stops at one or two 
Texas ports and takes on a cargo of cattle for this market. The pas- 
senger traffic between Brownsville and this port is quite large and is 
constantly increasing. 

MEXICAN TRANSATLANTIC COMPANY, 

running under Mexican flag, from Liverpool to Mexico, New Orleans, 
Havana and back to Liverpool. 

ANCHOR LINE 

steamers from Mediterranean to New Orleans and back to Liverpool; 
H. Clayton, Agent, Keuuer's Block, Carondelet street. 

THE NEW ORLEANS AND MEXICAN STEAMSHIP LINE. 

E. A. Yorke & Co. are the agents in this city. The steamer touches 
going and coming at the Mexican ports of Bagdad. Tampico, Tuxpan 
and Vera Cruz. Her outward cargoes are composed of assorted goods, 
and during the winter months mostly cotton.] 



70 LOUISIANA. 



LINES TO CENTRAL AMERICA. 

THE MACIIECA LINE TO ENGLISH AND SPANISH CENTRAL AMERICA. 

The Macheca Bros, have for ruauy years been engaged in a profitable- 
traffic with the coast of Central America and the islands of the Carib- 
bean archipelago. At present this firm lias two steamers, Kate Carrol 
and City of Dallas, making regular trips. to Belize, Livingston, Port 
Barrios, Isabel, Panzos, Puerto Cortez, carrying thither lumber, 
assorted goods and Western produce, and bringing back to this port 
the varied productions of the tropics, but particularly fruits. 

THE OTERI LINE TO SPANISH HONDURAS AND THE CARIBBEAN ARCHI- 
PELAGO. 

This enterprising firm has for many years engaged in the freight and 
fruit traffic between this port and Central America. They have three 
steamers, S. Oteri, Professor Morse, and E. B. Ward, Jr., making reg- 
ular trips to Ruatan, Utilla, Truxillo, Belfate, Ceiba, Stephen river and 
Congor Hoy in Spanish Honduras, carrying the United States and 
Spanish Honduras mails. They carry out passengers and assorted 
cargoes, and bring to this port Central American produce and, prin- 
cipally, tropical fruits. This traffic is also increasing rapidly. 

NEW ORLEANS, HONDURAS AND GUATEMALA STEAMSHIP 

COMPANY. 

For Belize, Livingston, Puerto Cortez and Santo Tomas, the steam- 
ship Ellie Knight, carrying United States mails, freight and passengers, 
makes regular trips. J. H. Menge, Agent. 

NEW ORLEANS AND CENTRAL AMERICAN STEAMSHIP LINE. 

For Corn Island, Qreytown, Blueflelds and Limon, the steamship' 
Lucy P. Miller makes regular trips, carries freight and passengers. C. 
A. Fish & Co., agents. 

ROSS, KEEN & CO'S. MEXICAN GULF LINE OF STEAMERS 

comprises a number of first class steamers running from New Orleans 
to* Liverpool, Havre, Antwerp, Bremen, Hamburg, Reval, London,. 
Geneva, Barcelona and other foreign ports, as cargo offers. This com- 
pany contracts for transportation to any port in Europe, by steam or 
sail. 

The following steamers are now in this line: Cassius, Cleddy, Drif- 
field, Jerands, Petriana, Silverdale, General Napier, and Robert Dick- 
enson. These steamers range from 1700 to 301)0 tons. 

THE WEST INDIA AND PACIFIC LINE 

of steamers, II. J. Sanders, agent, consists of thirteen first-class iron 
vessels which will average 2000 tons burden each, or will aggregate 
26,000 tons carrying capacity. This line runs between Liverpool, West 
Indian and Mexican ports and New Orleans. Tho ships bring out from 
Bordeaux and Havre large cargoes, which they distribute along their 
route. At the Antillian and Mexican ports the vessels obtain small 
quantities of cargo and arrive here to complete their freights. At this 
port they have to take on board grain — principally for ballast — cotton 
and cotton seed cake. These vessels have no regular time for arrival 
or departure, but generally leave here at the rate of one a week. 



WJuAN LINES OF STEAMERS. 71 



THE MISSISSIPPI AND DOMINION LINE, 

Silas Weeks & Co., agents, comprises thirteen first class steamers. 
Liverpool is the headquarters of the line and the point of departure 
for the vessels, which run to Corona, Spain, thence to Havana, and from 
thence to New Orleans, from which latter port they freight for Europe 
direct. 

Their cargoes from here are cotton, grain and oil cake principally. 
This line does a large outward freight and passenger traffic with Cuba. 

THE HARRISON LINE, 

Lucas E. Moore & Co., agents, is composed of twenty-five vessels, and 
is one of the largest lines that sails out of Liverpool. Its route lies 
among the West Indian Islands and the ports of Central America and 
Mexico, from Colon (or Aspinwall) to Tampico. But few of the vessels 
touch at this port — not more than two in a month. Those vessels of 
this line that come here procure at least half their return cargoes at the 
intertropical ports they visit. At this port they finish loading with 
cotton, graiu, oil, seed cake, etc. 

THE OLANO LARRINAGA & CO.'S 

line of Spanish steamers is composed of eight fine, large, iron vessels, 
Avendano Bros., agents. These vessels sail from Liverp >ol to several 
Spanish ports, and thence to Puerto Rico, Cuban ports and New Orleans. 
During the winter months a vessel of this line will leave this port 
every teu days. After procuring as much cargo as they can at the dif- 
ferent ports of the Antilles at which they touch, these vessels will call 
at New Orleans to finish loading, and will carry hence grain, cotton, 
etc., to Liverpool, via Havana. This line has a large share of the pas- 
senger trade of this port with the West India Islands, and is provided 
with all modern conveniences for this species of traffic. 

THE SERRA LINE 

of Spanish steamers is composed of thirteen fine large vessels. This 
line's route is from Liverpool, via Havana and West Indian ports, to 
New Orleans. At this port the vessels complete their loading and then 
sail for Liverpool direct. During the winter months about two vessels 
of this line touch here per month. Their principal homeward freight 
is cotton from here to Liverpool. 

SPANISH FLAG LINE, 

A. K. Miller & Co., agents. This line possesses ten vessels, which run 
from Liverpool to New Orleans, via Cuban ports. At this port they 
load with cotton and grain direct for Liverpool. During the winter 
mouths, at least, one vessel of the line will touch at New Orleans every 
two weeks. 

THE TRANSATLANTIC LINE, 

A. Schreiber, agent. This line is comprised of several fine iron ships, 
and during the winter one of its vessels leaves this port every fifteen 
days, direct for Havre, loaded with cotton, etc. On the trip from Eu- 
rope the vessels stop at numerous West Indian and Mexican ports and 
take on freight. They complete their cargoes at New Orleans. Some 
of these vessels bring passengers from West Indian and Mexican ports 
to this city every trip. 



72 LOUISIANA. 



NEW ORLEANS TO FLORIDA PORTS. 

The steamers Amite, Alcia and Washburn, Post & Son agents, 
leave this port every two weeks for Pensacola, Cedar Keys, St. Marks, 
and Apalachicola, Florida. The cargo carried to these ports generally 
consists of various kinds of Western produce. 

They connect at Cedar Keys with the mail steamers from Key West, 
Tampa Bay and Charlott's Harbor, and with the Transit Railroad to 
Jacksonville; at St. Marks with the Jacks mville, Pensacola and Mobile 
road to Tallahassee, at Apalachicola with the Central and People's line 
of boats for all points on the Chattahoochee and Flint rivers. 

THE CROMWELL LINE OF STEAMERS TO NEW YORK. 

This line has at present six first-class iron steamers on the route. 

Every week two vessels of the line arrive and depart from this port, 
and bring here and carry outward a large cargo of varied freight. 
From New York the cargo consists of assorted goods, which are des- 
tined for this port and for numerous places up the Mississippi river. 
A large quantity of heavy freight is brought from New York by this 
line for shipment, per river boats, to St. Louis. Thus the coast and 
river transportation compete favorable with the Northern roads for 
freight destined for the cities of the upper Mississippi valley, when 
time is of little consideration and when the goods are not of a perish- 
able nature. 

THE OUTWARD FREIGHTS 

are entirely composed of Southern products, rice, cotton, cotton seed 
cake, sugar, molasses, etc. The vessels also carry quantities of Central 
American and Mexican freight, brought to this port by the Wanderer, 
the E. B. Ward and the numerous schooners engaged in the inter- 
tropical trade. Some of this latter freight is transhipped at New 
York for Liverpool, Havre and Bremen, such as the coffee,- rubber, 
cedar aud dye woods of Central America aud also of Mexico. 

ROVERS. 

In addition to regular lines of steamships, many roving vessels 
from different ports of the world run into the port of New Orleans, to 
seek a cargo of cotton or grain. It would be impossible to enumerate 
these and the large number of sailing vessels trading at this port. 



ADVANTAGES OF THE SOUTHERN ROUTE FROM EUROPE. 

New Orleans is the largest and most wealthy city in the South, aud 
situated near the mouth of the great Mississippi river. 

The best route for immigrants from Europe to the South or West is 
by this port. 

The largest ships from all parts of the world pass up the river un- 
obstructed to her wharves, where they deliver and receive cargo. 

New Orleans is the greatest cotton market in the world, shipping 
nearly one-third the cotton crop of the United States. 

Since the opening of the mouth of the river by jetties, grain ele- 
vators have been erected here, and millions of bushels from the West 
find a secure waterway to Europe by this port. Grain from far-away 
California has also been attracted to this route. 

In addition to regular lines of first-class steamers from English, 
French, German and Spanish ports, many irregular ''roving" vessels, 
6eeking a cargo for Europe, come here for our staple products, which 



OCEAN LINES OF STEAMERS. 73 



are exported in the Call and winter, giving us annually 1500 ships with 
a tonnage of 15,500,000. Another Belgian line is projected from 
Antwerp, which will run direct to New Orleans in twenty-one days. 
This line will open the most direct communication with Europe and 
place us in communication with the surplus population of Holland, 
Denmark, Germany, Fiance, Spain, Portugal and Italy. 

Of the large tonnage now trading here it is estimated that GO per 
<;ent arrive " in ballast," with a capacity sufficient to stow comfortably 
100,000 immigrants annually. 

These ships at present are disorganized and content with a cargo 
one way, but the great inducements of a cargo both ways would crys- 
tallize the "rovers" into regular lines and enable them to can - }' freight 
as cheaply as the lines to Atlantic ports, notwithstanding the greater 
distance. 

The West is also interested in this route, for as the wheat from that 
section now seeks the waterway to Europe by New Orleans, the same 
ships which bear it away cau bring back a load of immigrants, and the 
empty returning grain barges can carry them comfortably and cheaply 
to the West up the Mississippi river. 

The dangers of the Northern route by New York in winter, from ice 
and tempestuous weather, are very great. Insurance companies record 
only six steamers lost on the Southern route since ocean steam navi- 
gation, but the records of one year showed seventy vessels that perished 
by the Northern route. This is indeed a strong argument in favot of 
the New Orleans route, but a comparison of the conditions imme- 
diately affecting the Western immigrants by the two routes, will 
clearly show the superior advantages of the Southern route. If the 
immigrant by the Northern route survives the perils of the stormy sea 
and floating icebergs, he must travel a thousand or more miles in 
crowded cars, and is finally set down in a country, locked in snow and 
ice, where his substance is exhausted in warding oil" hunger and cold. 
He works without profit to keep himself warm, until the ground has 
thawed and plowing may be done. 

By the Southern route the weather is moderate and the sea tranquil. 
The immigrants landed in New Orleans in October, November and 
December, can work at extra wages in our winter harvest of sugar and 
cotton, and when the spring opens they can proceed on their way to 
the West, with full pockets, in time to break ground as soon as it has 
thawed. 

It is all important that immigrants landing here, no matter what 
their destination, should be protected from "confidence men," who 
infest all seaport towns to prey upon the credulous. 

This will soon be effected by the building at New Orleans a house 
of shelter — a Castle Garden— where, under the direction of proper 
officials, the newly arrived immigrants will be rested and cared for, 
advised and forwarded to their destinations. Nearly enough funds are 
already available for building the Castle Garden, and it is probable 
that the home will be put in operation within the next year. 

When we have completed the. Castle Garden at New Orleans, the 
commerce of the port will be facilitated by giving ocean steamers a 
cargo both ways. This will enable them to reduce freights to a figure 
that will draw the bulk of*grain in the West down the Mississippi 
river to New Orleans and thence to the ports of Europe. 

It will be contrary to our policy to endeavor to hold in the South 
immigrants intended for the West. 



74 LOUISIANA. 



They will be-bired in oar winter harvest and promptly forwarded in 
the spring. 

New Orleans will be regarded simply as a " way station " on the 
natural thoroughfare to the West. Tbe first ship load of winter 
harvesters passing up the river in the spring will meet those who came 
by New York and hibernated in the snow. They will advertise our 
winter harvest, and those who follow the next season, will take the 
New Orleans route. It will, thus, not be long before its advantages- 
are known to all Europe. 

The Southern country must be seen to be appreciated. The fertility 
of our soils would commend them to all who passed through. The 
recollection of our sunny land would linger through the bleak winter 
of the Northwest, and some woidd return to us in a year or two. The 
immigrants passing through, would dispel the prejudice against the 
South, so assiduously cultivated by agents from other sections of the 
United States. 

The Castle Garden at New Orleans will be controlled by a board 
composed of representatives of all corporations and sections interested 
in obtaining immigration through this port. 

It will prove a boon to the South with detriment to no part of it. 

The necessary ships are already here, arriving in ballast; rail- 
roads leading into every State centre here; we have the great riveiy 
with its thousands of miles of tributaries reaching up into the heart of 
the far West, and it will only have accomplished its ultimate destiny 
as the great waterway to Europe, when our purposes shall have been; 
carried out. 



THE EADS ISTHMIAN RAILWAY. 

[New Oilcans Democrat.] 

The proposed route of the ship railway over the Mexican isthmus is r 
in round numbers, about 150 miles long, and will lead in a direction 
nearly' north and south, or from the Pacific side north to the Gulf 
coast. As there are two rivers running along the route, Mr. Eads will 
utilize them for some fifty miles ; thus the actual length of the ship 
railway will not be much more than 100 miles. On the Pacific side the 
water is sufficiently deep to admit the approach of vessels of any draft, 
while on the Gulf coast a port may easily be constructed with but little 
expense to the company. 

The study of a huge map — on the Mercator projection— will convince 
an impartial mind that this ship railway will accomplish a revolution 
in the existing traffic lines and trade routes of the entire planet, while 
at the same time the happy situation of the Crescent City, which is- 
within 1000 miles of the Northern terminus of the railway, is strikingly 
apparent. The great steamers and large sailing vessels engaged in the 
China trade, instead of rounding Cape Horn or the Cape of Good Hope, 
or going by the Suez Canal, will save thousands of miles of distance 
and many days time by taking advantage of Capt. Eads's new route. 
The expense attending their transportation over the isthmus will be 
small when compared to the money gained by the great economy of 
time and distance. 

The Australian trade with this continent has hitherto been — at least 
since the completion of the Pacific Railroad — with San Francisco. The 
vessels engaged in this traffic, whose cargoes are destined for the val- 
ley cities and the Eastern markets of this republic, will sail from the. 



THE EA DS 1STHMIA N HO UTE. 75. 



South sea direct for the railway, and will be carried over and launched 
into the gulf. The majority of them will proceed to this city aud un- 
load their precious freight at our levee. They will carry from here 
cargoes of cotton, of grain and of cotton seed oil to Europe, while it 
will not be long before lines of steamers will ply directly between the 
transequatorial ports of Australia and our city via the new isthmian 
route. 

As but slight and variable winds prevail in this region for the greater 
part of the year, and but few coasting steamers break the flow of the 
waters, the traffic along the Pacific coast of South America, from Val- 
paraiso northward is still in its infancy. When the Eads railway is 
completed, numerous little steamers from 500 to 1000 tons burden will 
ply along the now almost deserted coast, and will bring via this isth- 
mian route their cargoes of valuable but unique productions to the- 
Crescent City. .They will carry back with them full freights of the 
farm products, the manufactured textile goods and the machinery and 
hardware of the United States to the numerous transequatorial ports- 
which ai e now supplied with these goods direct from Europe. 



THE 



PARISHES OF LOUISIANA. 



EXTENT, CULTIVATION, POPULATION. 



parish. 



Ascension 

Assumption 

Avoyelles 

Baton Rouge, East. 
Baton Rouge, "West 

Bienville 

Bossier 

Caddo 

Calcasieu 

Caldwell 

Cameron 

Carroll, East 

Carroll, West 

Catahoula 

Clailxnii' 

Concordia 

DeSoto 

Feliciana, East.... 
Feliciana, "West .. . 

Franklin 

Grant 

Iberia 

Iberville 

Jackson 

J e fferson 

Lata vet te 

Lafourche 

Livingston 

Lincoln 

Madison 



• 


.a 




• ■2 


23 




(- £h 


s 




sa 





a 


cr 


a • 




to 




V 








a 














> 




< 


-j1 


p-i 


373 


37,908 


16 896 


327 


36,511 


17,010 


843 


84,787 


16,747 


395 


40,026 


19,9-6 


210 


26,753 


7,667 


856 


45,048 


10,442 


773 


69,420 


16,045 


852 


95,409 


26,305 


3,400 


14,003 


12,448 


535 


18,267 


5,770 


1,545 


5,743 


2,415 


400 


56.793 


12 147 


380 


10,071 


2.776 


1,350 


29,823 


10,288 


765 


126,000 


18,857 


C20 


45.816 


14.9J4 


856 


82,239 


15,605 


450 


53.11* 


15,132 


302 


21,115 


12,809 


550 


22,104 


6,495 


578 


24,414 


6,188 


536 


49,604 


16.686 


646 


42,112 


17,600 


576 


26,60-1 


5,328 


305 


19,767 


12,166 


262 


62.704 


13,236 


1,024 


44 802 


19,113 


575 


10,467 
108,084 


5,258 
11 075 


485 


670 


48,395 


13.908 



PARISH. 



Morehouse 

Natchitoches . . 

Orleans 

Ouachita 

Plaquemines... 
Points Coupee. 

Rapides 

Red River 

Richland. 

Sabine 

St. Bernard. ... 

St, Charles 

St. Helena 

St. James 

St. John 

St. Landry 

St. Martin 

St. Mary 

St. Tammany. . 
Tangipahoa.. .. 

Tensas 

Terrebonne. . . . 

Union 

Vermilion 

Vernon 

Washington. .. 

I Webster 

Winn , 



Total. 



V 


•j3 






S3 


3 
O 








•S a 


m 















^ S* 


H 




< 


*j 


760 


57,379 


1,290 


58,969 


187 


4,436 


640 


48,847 


930 


36,908 


575 


56,594 


1,498 


76,149 


386 


33,930 


578 


31.409 


1,008 


18,524 


680 


11,850 


2M 


21,177 


413 


28,285 


308 


54,675 


190 


29,213 


2,276 


137,370 


618 


39,876 


648 


66,326 


923 


3.895 


790 


21.021 


612 


78.679 


1,80G 


40.4113 


880 


62,601 


1,220 


25,330 


1.540 


16,303 


668 


18, 224 


594 


42.402 


954 


22,548 


44,426 


2.507.935 



14.206 

19.722 

216,110 

14.723 

11,575 

17,799 

23,597 

8,573 

8,444 

7,344 

4,405 

7,161 

7,504 

14,714 

9,686 

40 002 

12,662 

19,891 

t>87 

9,638 

17,824 

17,956 

13,526 

8,735 

5.160 

5,190 

10.005 

5,840 

940,103 



ASCENSION, IBERVILLE, ST. JAMES, ST JOHN, ST. CHARLES 

AND JEFFERSON. 

These parishes lie on both hanks of the Mississippi river and extend 
from the city of New Orleans to the Baton Rouge parishes, having a 
double river front of about 125 miles. On the west bank of the river 
they are traversed by the New Orleans and Pacific Railroad, and 
on the east by the Mississippi Valley road. The soil of 
these parishes is alluvial and the principal products sugar and rice. 
St. James is noted as the Perique tobacco parish, although this valuable 
product may be grown on any of the lands in this section. The prin- 
cipal towns in these parishes are Donaldsonvillc, Plaqueniine, St. 
James, Edgard, Hahuville and Jefferson. There are many other vil- 
lages and public steamboat landings along the river, but steamboats 
.generally deliver and receive freight direct at each plantation landing. 



THE PAB1SHES OF LOUISIANA. IT 



The climate on this coast is very fine, the weather during the greater 
part of the year is most delightful, and the healthfulness is conceded 
by all practicing physiciaus. The average duration of human life 
is as long here as anywhere else in the United States. The winters 
are like Indian summers, and spring generally opens in February with 
blossoms on the peach and plum trees, and blackberry bushes. Roses 
bloom throught the entire winter. The heat of summer is moderated 
by the refreshing breezes from the lakes and river, and the nights are 
generally pleasant. 

The lands being alluvial, formed gradually from deposits left by the 
sediment brought down the Mississippi and other rivers, are the richest 
in the world. They are highest on the banks of streams, from which 
they slope off into the wooded lands in the rear, which are generally 
swamps. Hence the distinction between "front" and "back" lands. 
Here and there will be found a ridge or belt of high land, covered with 
a variety of magnificent trees and a thick undergrowth of canes and 
climbing vines, and sometimes can be found an Indian mouud, made 
of shells from the neighboring lakes. The front lands are mostly 
cleared and cultivated for two or three miles back. The cleared part 
of ridges is also cultivated. The principal forest, growth is cypress, 
oak, ash, gum, maple, elm, hackberry, willow and Cottonwood. 

The price of land varies according to location and improvement. 

The religion of the old settlers who speak French and of their de- 
scendants is Catholic. 

There are public schools, besides private schools, in every village. 

There are many beautiful and profitable orange orchards. Pecan 
trees furnish an abundance of delicious nuts, while Japan and other 
plums and figs grow in great luxuriance and abundance. Peaches,, 
grapes, pears, bananas, persimmons, strawberries, blackberries, dew- 
berries and mulberries all do well. Corn and potatoes grow abund- 
antly. Of vegetables the choicest in the land can be seen growing in 
summer and winter. 

Horses, mules, cows, sheep, goats and hogs thrive well. Sheep and 
hogs especially are easily kept, multiply rapidly and are- profitable. 
Grazing facilities are great ; as the winters are never very severe, grass 
docs not entirely die out. Excellent hay can be made from the native 
grasses. 

A better place for a vegetable garden and truck path can hardly be 
imagined. Winter, summer, spring and fall gardens can be, and are, 
planted here, and there is no month nor week in the year when the 
gardener cannot be gathering his harvests. To give a list of all 
the vegetables that can be successfully and profitably raised here 
would be to print the catalogue of the most complete garden seed es- 
tablishment in the country. No hot-houses are required to produce 
many of our North summer's vegetables in the very middle of winter, 
and a ready market for all that can be raised is always near at hand. 

This is the laud of milk and honey. Flowers abound. Bees do 
splendidly and require but little care. In this semi-tropical clime they 
can gather their harvest from flowers all the year. No man is excusable 
in this region for not adorning his liome with a robe of beauty. Almost 
every flower and shrub and flowering tree known to the zone, from the 
lofty magnolia — which gives a charm to any scene where it grows — 
to the delicate violet, flourishes here. Many residences are literally 
embowered in blooming trees, shrubbery, vines and flowers. A hun- 



"73 LOUISIANA, 



tired varieties of the rose can be raised to make the air fragrant, from 
January co June, and then again from June to January. 

Perhaps there is not a spot in the world where the dairy business 
•can be conducted with such profit as here. Cows do well and give a 
large quantity of milk all the year on the range alone. 

There is no land in the world where poultry raising is so easy and 
profitable an occupation as in this section of the Mississippi valley. 
Turkeys, geese, ducks, chickens, Guinea fowls, pigeons, etc., here thrive 
and increase without expense to the owner; and besides supplying 
"his table, enable him to dispose of a large number each year to mar- 
'ket. 

The hikes, bayous, ponds and river furnish a constant supply of dif- 
ferent kinds offish. The fields and woods afford fine sport to the 
huntsman. Hares, squirrels, raccoons, and many varieties of birds 
are plentiful, while sometimes a deer or bear is met with. 

The plantation drainage is effected by open ditches and canals run- 
ning back from the river to lower land in the rear, or into some one of 
the numerous bayous, which form a net work all over the alluvial 
region. 

The decks of the passing steamboats, afford a view of the growing 
crops of sugar cane and rice, and the residences of the planters, sur- 
rounded by live oaks and orange trees, that is very attractive to the 
traveler. 

In addition to the lauds along the river, the bayou banks are culti- 
vated to the depth of from one to two miles back. 

In rear of the arable lands, are dense forests of cypress, oak, ash, 
gum and other valuable timbers. 

The cypress is utilized by the planters to make coolers, hogsheads, 
barrels, cisterns, shingles, and general lumber. Up to this time no 
other use is made of the remaining valuable forest growth, except 
burning it for fuel. 

ASCENSION PARISH 

;is almost all alluvial ; the portion fronting on the Mississippi river is 
identical in character with that of the" coast" of Iberville ; the parish 
is adapted to sugar, rice and cotton, and the lands highly productive. 
The parish town, Donaldsonville, is a thriving village of about 2000 
inhabitants, and at one time was inclined to dispute precedence with 
.New Orleans and Baton Rouge. 

By far the larger portion of this parish lies east of the Misssissippi 
Driver. 

The river front, from one to three miles back, is occupied by some 
• of the finest sugar plantations in the State. 

Opposite Donaldsonville, is the little village of Darrowville, which 
ihas sprung up within the last few years. 

The land on this side of the river is generally alluvial, but on the 
.northern boundary there is a strip of bluff land, three or four miles 
wide and about fifteen miles in length. 

The New river, Amite and Manchac, are thickly settled with small 
.farmers, who are industrious and thrifty. 

IBERVILLE PARISH 

lies between the Bayou Grosse Tete and the Mississippi river on the 
•east, and the upper Grand river and its chain of lakes and bayous 
'bordering the parish of St. Martin on the West. It is wholly alluvial; 



THE PARISHES OF LOUISIANA. 79 



■Belts of cultiva table and highly productive lands lie along most of the 
bayous to the depth of one-half to two miles, especially in the northern 
portion, along Bayous Grosse Tete, Maringuin and Deglaize. 

In the southern part of the parish, along lower Grand river and its 
tributaries, bayous Pigeon and Sorrel, the hinds have been partially 
cleared, iind are of fine quality, but the overflows prevent their occu- 
pation to a great extent. Bayou Plaqueniine, connecting Grand river 
with the Mississippi, is a large navigable stream, and is thickly set- 
tled along both of its banks. The court-house town of Plaqueniine 
has a flourishing business in the shipment of agricultural produce and 
(cypress) lumber. 

The " coast" of Iberville is remarkable for the highly improved con- 
dition and great extent of its plantations, there being many handsome 
residences, surrounded by parks of live oak and pecan trees. Cleared 
lands lie also along Bayou Goula and Manufactory Bayou, extending 
•back almost to Lake Natchez, by which they are thoroughly drained. 

ST. JAMES PARISH, 

north of the river, resembles more the river parishes further north 
than those of the Delta plain proper. The highlands near the river 
are highly productive and densely settled, and mostly occupied by 
sugar plantations. Northward of this belt the drainage is toward 
Lake Maurepas, through Bayou des Acadieus and Mississippi Bayou, 
which head a few miles from the main river. The belt of marsh land 
fringing the shores of Lake Maurepas is only from three-quarters to 
•one mile wide, and the laud along the bayous south of the river; the 
cultivated border belt of the usual width of from two and a half to 
three miles is somewhat abruptly terminated by the marsh prairies 
that border the Lake des Allemands. which thence extend westward 
as a belt about six miles in width, a little beyond the principal 
meridian of the survey, about half way between the river and Bayou 
Lafourche. 

ST. CHARLES PARISH 

lias many geographical advantages, and is partially bounded on differ- 
■ent sides by three lakes of considerable size, namely : Pontchar train, 
Des Allemands and Salvador, the last two being connected by Bayou 
Des •Allemands. The distance by river from its court-house to the 
present upper limits of New Orleans is about twenty miles. The means 
of communication between the two points are many and comfortable. 

St. Charles and the adjoining parish of St. John were first settled by 
two hundred German colonists, who came from Alsatia in 1720. The 
river coast of these parishes was for a long time known as the German 
coast, and a lake and bayou (Des Allemands) also derived their names 
from them. 

Subsequently, in 1756, a number of Arcadian families, refugees from 
■Nova Scotia, settled here. The present Creole population of the par- 
ish, distinguished for their simplicity, thrift and happy disposition, are 
the descendants of the followers of the Chevalier Darinsbourg, from 
Alsatia, and the French exiles from Nova Scotia. They embrace the 
largest part of the white population. 

There are several saw mills in the parish, from which large quanti- 
ties of cypress lumber are furnished. The making of pickets, clap- 
boards, shingles, hogsheads and barrels gives employment to many. 

The facilities for the transportation of freight or passengers is good. 



SO LOUISIANA. 



Three railroads from New Orleans pass through the parish, namely : 
the Donaldsonville, the Morgan, and the Chicago railroads. The Mis- 
sissippi river, the lakes, and Bayous Des Allemauds afford facilities for 
water crafts. The public road along the river puts the planter who is 
on horseback or in a buggy within easy access of the city of New Or- 
leans. 

At Boutte Station, in the southeast corner of the parish, resides a 
camp of Choctaw Indians, whose living is made by manufacturing all 
sorts of baskets and wares from the native cane, and by gathering 
sassafras leaves that are ground into gumbo ,/?//c. There is a rice mill 
in the parish, and at Hahuville there are quite a large number of 
mechanical industries. 

At Bayou des Allemands many men do handsomely by hunting, and 
in the winter months large numbers of wild ducks are shipped to New 
Orleans from this point. The gathering and curing of moss, the cut- 
ting and marketing of wood affords profitable employment. Soil in 
the vicinity of the river is well adapted to the manufacture of bricks 
aud common pottery. 

Boutte Station, on the line of the Morgan railroad, is a pretty little 
village, with several stores, a public school and a number of pretty 
homes. 

The Star plantation, one of the finest in the parish, abotit three 
miles above Hahuville, was the home of the Chevalier Darinsbourg,. 
the chief of the early Gennan colonists. There is now a Catholic 
church and grave-yard at the lower front corner. 

Freetown is the name given to a Creole settlement at the river termi- 
nation of the Boutte road. Here there, are a number of white and col- 
ored families with small gardens. There are several large stores at 
tliis point. The place is well shaded by pecan and other trees. There 
is a Catholic chapel and a colored church there. 

Hahuville. — Hahuville, situated on the right bank, about twenty-eight 
miles from Canal street, is one of the prettiest villages in the State. 
There are here two schools, two churches, a newspaper, several fine 
stores, blacksmiths, carpenters, bakers, butchers, etc. The court- 
house is situated one--half mile below Hahuville, aud is half-way be- 
tween each end of the parish. 

ST. JOHN PARISH, 

reaching southward to the Lake des Allemands and its bordering 
marshes, while to the northward it embraces the neck of land that 
separates Lakes Pontchartrain and Maurepas, is, in most respects, sim- 
ilar to St. Charles. Between the main river and Lake Maurepas, it 
comprehends a flue expanse of agricultural laud of great productive- 
ness and in a high state of cultivation. Fields of sugar cane and mar- # 
ket gardens occupy most of the cultivable lands in the parish. The' 
region between the two lakes is partly cypress swamp, partly marsh 
prairie, rendered almost impenetrable by a thick undergrowth of saw 
palmetto. The prairie on the border of Lake Pontchartrain is partly of 
the "trembling" character, which is perceptible even to the passer-by 
on the great highway — the New Orleaus and Chicago Railroad— that 
traverses it. A few cultivated spots and settlements exist in this re- 
gion also. 



THE PARISHES OF LOUISIANA. 81 



JEFFERSON PARISH 

stretches from Lake Pontchartrain on the north to the head of Bara- 
taria Bay on 1 lie gulf coast. Most of the tillable lands lie in the 
northern portion along the Mississippi river, jnst west of, as well as 
opposite to the city of New Orleans. The relatively high banks of 
the Mississippi, on which the towns of Algiers and Gretna are located, 
form a dividing ridge, from the south side of which the water drains 
southward through Bayou Barataria and its connections into Barataria 
Bay. On the higher land accompanying this bayou, as well as Bayou 
Dauphiue or Des Families, there are some fine sugar plantations, 
although the tillable lands are of little depth, and from about the 
junction of the two bayous, near the eastern end of Lake Washa, the 
marsh prairie closes in upon their banks. 

In the southern portion, the surface of the parish is almost entirely 
covered by swamp, marsh prairie and sea marsh, traversed by an in- 
tricate network of bayous and dotted with lakes, resorts of fishermen 
and duck-hunters only. Numerous shell-heaps form the only eleva- 
tions in the level plain ; they are almost exclusively composed of the 
"clam "or guathodon, and will doubtless, in the future, be made 
profitable for the making of roads, as are those on Lake Pontchartrain. 

Through Company Canal, light-draught steamers and other craft can 
pass from the Mississippi, near Algiers, into Bayou Barataria, and Har- 
vey's Canal establishes similar communication farther west. Barataria 
Bayou is navigable, and through its connections the waters of the 
Gulf are reached without difficulty. Prior to the construction of the 
Southpass jetties, this route was strongly urged as the most desirable 
outlet for the shipping from New Orleans ; and it may even yet become 
of considerable importance for the coasting trade, since there is but 
little current to be encountered in making the passage up from Bara- 
taria Bay. 

The shore of Lake Pontchartrain, at the northern end of the parish, 
is bordered with four to five miles of marsh prairie, whose landward 
limit is marked b\- a belt of live oak, forming the back ground of the 
landscape as seen from the river. The lands intervening between the 
live oak belt and the river are thickly settled and highly productive. 

A prominent citizen of the coast, writes : 

"We have room for more people. We want mechanics and industrious 
people of all classes to come and make their homes here. This country 
presents as good an opening to energy and pluck as any other, and we 
want the country to know it. It is noted for the excellence of its 
climate, the fertility of its soil, the variety and abundance of its pro- 
ducts and the wealth, refinement, congenial and friendly character of 
its older citizens. The New Orleans and Donaldsonville Railroad 
track stretches along its rear; the great, rapid river rolls by its front,. 
and the tireless steamers, proudly bearing their golden freight, ply 
their trade and float upon its heaving bosom as far as the human eye 
can see up or down. By these facilities New Orleans can be reached 
in two hours. Here land, lots and houses are offered for sale as 
cheaply and on as favorable terms as the same can be had anywhere. 
Can any more be said for any country 1 ? Where, under the sun are 
there better opportunities presented to the poor, ambitious planter or 
industrious mechanic"? It is astounding to reflect that this vast and 
wonderful country, so rich in its thousand resources has never been 
touched by the hand of energetic enterprise. 
6 



82 LOUISIANA. 



"What is to prevent the tide of emigration from setting this way, and 
occupying our idle lands with the hardy tillers of the soil — the world's 
strongest, bravest and most intrepid people, the settlers and pioneers ? 
Nothing ! The sweet light of our future prosperity is now dawning ; 
the day of Louisiana's glory breaks; we dwell in peace at home, and 
the dark clouds which hitherto obscured the vision, have been lifted 
and dissipated." 

ASSUMPTION, LAFOURCHE AND TERREBONNE PARISHES. 

These parishes lie west of the Mississippi river. They extend from 
near Doualdsonville to the Gulf of Mexico. The Bayou Lafourche, 
which flows out of the Mississippi river at Donaldson ville, passes 
through the entire length of Assumption and Lafourche to the Gulf, 
about one hundred miles to the southeast. 

To the south and west of these parishes is the parish of Terrebonne, 
extending along the Gulf of Mexico from Timbalier Bay on the east to 
Atchafalaya Bay on the west, a distance of over seventy miles. It has 
for its northern and eastern boundaries the parish of Lafourche and a 
portion of Assumption, while on the west it is bounded by the parish 
of St. Mary and the Atchafalaya Bay and river. The parish covers an 
area of about 1,584 square miles and was originally settled by Aca- 
dians about the year 1765. A large portion of the land lying along 
the gulf is sea marsh, and, therefore, not available for agricultural 
purposes unless properly drained. In the northern portion of the 
parish, however, will be found a very superior quality of alluvial soil, 
which is wonderful in its productive capacities and is extensively cul- 
tivated. In this section, in the vicinity of the town of Houina, the 
surface of the earth is about eleven feet above tide-water, and by 
means of numerous bayous is readily drained. 

The arable land of these parishes is all alluvial. A part is sandy 
loam, another black stiff soil with no sand, aud a combination of 
these two. The sandy soil is lighter and more easily worked ; but 
the stiff land ripens cane earlier and is more adapted to rice culture. 
The mixed soil combines the good qualities of both. 

The pea crop is almost in universal use as a fertilizer, and in those 
instances in which this system has been persistently adhered to before 
the virgin soil became tired from a constant succession of the same 
exhaustive crops, these fields rival freshly cleared lands in the abund- 
ance and luxuriousness of their yield. 

The plantations along the streams are generally laid off in large 
tracts, the front portion being appropriated to cane aud corn, and the 
rear lands to tenants who cultivate rice. 

In the rear of the plantations, which usually extend back to eighty 
acres, are found dry bayous having high lands on each bank; these 
ridges are mostly occupied by small proprietors, who cultivate cane, 
corn, cotton and rice, and such other crops as contribute to the com- 
fort of their homes and the support of their families. 

The prevailing religion in this section is the Roman Catholic ; but 
■churches of all denominations, as well as public aud private schools, 
are established in every village. 

The people of this section are generally intelligent, educated and 
refined. All classes are kind and hospitable. 

Bayou Lafourche is navigable for about seven months in the year 
for steamboats and all species of water craft. By it stone, coal, fire 



TEE PARISEES OF LOUISIANA. S3 



"brick, hoop-poles, sand, lime, lumber from the west, are landed in front 
of the various sugar plantations and towns; also rafts of saw logs aro 
landed at the saw mills, floated from the swamps of upper Louisiana 
and Mississippi. By this stream, either on steamboats during high 
water, or by flat-boats in low water, a large amount of the sugar 
machinery, etc., necessary in the culture of sugar, and merchandise, is 
brought to the different landings, and the crops made are transported 
to market. From the sea shore by means of luggers, oysters, game, 
flsh, melons, oranges, etc., are brought to the railroad stations for re- 
shipment to the New Orleans market, or peddled along the bayou to 
the residents on either bank. 

Bayou dee Allemands is a beautiful stream, rising near Donaldson- 
ville, and emptying into Lake Salvador, where it is lost in the numer- 
ous bays and outlets extending to the Gulf of Mexico. It is navigable 
for steamboats drawing four feet of water, and through it many of the 
products of Lafourche find an outlet to market. This bayou drains 
all that section of country found between Bayou Lafourche and the 
Mississippi river as far down as the parish of St. Charles. 

Bayou Blue flows from Thibodaux to the Gulf, and from Lake 
Fields down could be rendered navigable. 

Bayous Chicbey, Choupic, Malogay and Grand Bayou, and various 
others, serve as drains to the country. 

Lake Fields, in the rear of Lock port, and Lake Long in its rear, ai'e 
beautiful bodies of water, noted for their excellent fish — such as cat, 
.sac-a-lait, perch, buffalo, etc. 

Lake Salvador is a magnificent body of water north of Lockport, 
and is the entrance to one of the most charming body of lakes that 
lead into the Gulf at Grand Pass, that can be found on the globe. 

Lake Allemands is a large body of water between Lafourche and 
St. James. These lakes are supplied with flsh and crabs at all 
seasons, and during the hunting seasons are favorite resting places 
for the immense flocks of poule-d'eau and ducks, that come down 
from the colder climes of the north. 

Many of the inhabitants actually clothe and feed their families from 
the proceeds derived from their fowl yards, and in the spring boxes of 
eggs constitute the principal down freights of steam packets. 

The soil is admirably adapted to the production of field peas, pota- 
toes (both sweet .and Irish), pumpkins, melons and garden truck 
generally. Figs, plums, peaches and oranges arc grown successfully 
in the different localities adapted to their nature. 

The uncleared lands are densely covered with the best of timber, 
among which is found the different varieties of oak, ash, cypress, gum, 
magnolia, maple and wild pecan. The most valuable among theso 
is the cypress, which is very durable and extensively used for building 
purposes, fences, shingles, staves and fuel. The number of ornamental 
trees and evergreens for the beautifying of yards and parks is very 
large, among which the magnolia grande flora and the majestic live 
oak, richly deserve the encomiums which have been so profusely be- 
stowed by visitants of our State. 

There are large bodies of land in the interior, densely covered 
with fine cypress, at this time a little inconvenient of access, but as 
the timber now near at hand is being rapidly consumed, these 
swamps in the near future must necessarily become very valuable. The 
timber business offers a large field for industry and enterprise, for 



84 LOUISIANA. 



lower Louisiana of necessity deals largely in building- materials, 
pickets, barrel and hogshead staves and shingles. 

A general prejudice prevails among strangers, and grave doubts as 
to the capacity of the white race to pursue agricultural labor during 
the heat of summer. But small farmers have been accustomed to 
perform their daily round of labor as agriculturists without any detri- 
ment to their health. As a rule, the Creole population are early risers- 
and get through a large portion of their work iu the early part of the 
day, take a good rest at noon, and finish in the evening after tue sun 
has lost some of its force. The health of the laboring white popu- 
lation will compare favorably with that of any other Southern State. 

Strangers often express surprise that a flat country, in which the 
cypress trees abound, and in which most forest trees are draped with 
moss, should contain so many individuals who have reached the age 
of three score and ten. 

The nights are cool, and we are not subjected to the intense heat 
which, dining the summer,- often deprives the inhabitants of higher 
latitudes of refreshing slumber at night. Proximity to the Gulf coast 
exercises a delightful and grateful influence on the heat of summer. 

Owing to the situation of lands on the Lafourche, and the length of 
time the country has been serried (upwards of a century), the induce- 
ments to emigrants for cheap lands are not so great as those found in 
some of the highland parishes, which possess larger areas of cul- 
tivable lands. These can b". purchased at lower prices; but lands in 
this section are more fertile and more convenient to market, two- 
advantages which should have great weight with settlers in a new 
country. 

In the rear of the front owners small tracts of land can be purchased 
at reasonable prices, which possess a soil of equal fertility with the 
front tracts, and the additional advantage of having a fine range for 
stock of all kinds. These lands are admirably adapted to the wants 
of farmers on a small scale, and so great in their fertility that it re- 
quires but little work to secure all the necessaries of life, its comforts 
and many of its luxuries. 

The facility for sending produce to New Orleans, the principal mar- 
ket, is equal to that of any other country, and the wants of the com- 
munity are supplied directly from that great mart of commerce or the 
various stores situated on the banks of the Lafourche and. the interior,. 

Steamers which carry the weight of a thousand hogsheads of sugar 
pass daily within hail, and at the same time offer pleasant accommo- 
dations for travelers who are not pressed for time. 

Morgan's Louisiana and Texas Railroad gives quick and direct 
transportation to New Orleans. 

The principal towns are Houma, Napoleonville and Thibodaux, but 
both banks of the Lafourche are dotted with pretty, thriving villages. 

Both public and private schools are maintained in every village. There 
are ssparate schools for whites and negroes. 

This section is well supplied with churches, and each denomination 
can attend its own place of worship without any inconvenience. Those 
who belong to the Roman Church are largely in the ascendant in point 
of numbers, and possesses some tine houses of worship. Great libe- 
rality in religious matters prevails, and the different sects cordially 
unite in the promotion of charitable objects. 



THE PARISHES OF LOUISIANA. 85 



There is a constant demand at remunerative prices for mechanical 
engineers, carpenters, smiths, and held hands. The amount of ma- 
chinery in sugar-houses of an expensive character creates a great de- 
mand for the best talent in the repair and supply of engines, vacuum- 
pans, centrifugals and sugar mills. On the efficiency of the machinery 
necessary to take off a crop of sugar cane depends the success of a 
whole year's work, and must be done in proper time or the planter 
suffers great loss. 

Several hundred people residing on the lower Lafourche and Terre- 
bonne interior lakes earn a comfortable subsistence in transporting 
oysters, either to residents up the Lafourche or by way of the lakes 
and canals to New Orleans. In winter, others follow "duck hunting, 
shooting these migratory birds for the New Orleans market and home 
consumption. 

AVOYELLES, RAPIDES, NATCHITOCHES AND RED RIVER. 

These parishes extend, in the order named, from the mouth of the 
Red river, along its winding course, for about 300 miles to the north- 
west, where it enters Caddo parish. 

The formation of Avoyelles is alluvial, except a small amount of 
prairie. 

The soil of Rapides, Natchitoches and Red River is alluvial along 
the streams, but the greater portion of the land lies in the long leaf 
pine hills and good uplands. Facility for reaching market is afforded 
by Red river and the New Orleaus and Pacific Railroad. 

The principal towns are Marksville, Alexandria, Natchitoches and 
Coushatta. The arable alluvial lands of 

AVOYELLES 

lie along the numerous bayous with which it is cut up. These lands 
are unsurpassed by any in the Mississippi Valley, and have attracted 
fanners from other Southern States, who live by the sweat of their 
brows and are steadily growing rich in their new homes. 

The Hon. II. Skipwith writes as follows of the prairie in this parish: 
"Penetrating the parish from Simmsport to Moreauville, the en- 
tire route upon nearly tin; same level, a stranger who emerges from 
the swam]) and sees for the first time the Marksville prairie towering 
fifty feet above him, presenting to his astonished vision the appear- 
ance of frowning battlements of some venerable fortress, at first view 
it seems as though an impassable barrier to his further progress has 
been conjured up by some wonderful upheaval of nature; but as he 
draws nearer and scans the marks of unquestioikable antiquity, and 
v inds his devious way until he finds a road almost as steep as the Tar- 
peian rock, awe and wonderment give place to curiosity. 

" This' prairie— eight miles from east to west, and eighteen miles from 
north to south— has upon it some venerable landmarks, and about 18,- 
000 acres of very fair land, which, under a system of rather negligent 
tillage, has been steadily increasing in productive capacity, it being a 
common remark among the close observers in tlie parish that the prairie 
is now more fertile than when it was first settled, somewhere between 
1763 and J/84, by a number of Acadian families who fled from the floods 
which were spread over Pointe Coupee. It was also the site of the old 
post of Avoyelles, and it is still the home of the feeble remnant of the 



SG ...-.-, LOUISIANA. 



tribe of Tunicas which was ODce strong enough to wage war with the 
Natchez and hold them in check. Along the eastern margin of this- 
prairie the Red river once flowed, and upon its northeastern margin,, 
almost within the corporate limits of Marksville, are still to he seen 
the well-defined lineaments of an earthwork, crescent in form, too labo- 
riously constructed and too skillfully laid off to warrant the opinion 
that it was the work of any savage tribe. 

"Just south of Choupique — a remarkable elevation of plateau, five- 
miles in length and three miles wide — is another of these astounding 
revelations to the traveler, rising suddenly out of the swamp seventy- 
five feet. The soil of this prairie is fertile, and almost as productive 
as the alluvions which environ it." 

EAPIDES. 

Red river flows diagonally across this parish from northwest to south- 
east, and its course through the parish, by the meanderiugs of the 
stream, is about sixty miles in length. The valley lies mainly on the 
west side, and has an average width of about ten miles. Through this 
alluvial territory, west of Red river and nearly parallel with it. flow 
the Bayous Rapides, Robert and Bceuf, forming almost a continuous 
stream. The distance intervening between the river and these bayous 
varies from two to about seven miles. In this section the plantations- 
and farms which are contiguous are located on the river and along the 
bayous, near which stand the residences of the planters and the quar- 
ters for laborers. Here, also, are located the sugar mills, cotton gins, 
and the other buildings of the farms; and near the margins of these 
streams run the highways which traverse the country. Nearly the 
whole of the territory here described is above overflow, and every acre 
can be reclaimed and brought into cultivation. 

This section is by far the richest portion of the parish, and here are 
found many of the largest and most productive cotton and sugar plan- 
tations in the State. It was originally covered with dense canebrakes, 
but these have been destroyed by the inroads of herds of stock, or have 
given place to the varied crops produced in this portion of Louisiana. 

The healthful ness of the parish is not excelled by any portion of the 
South, and is as nearly perfect as that of any country. Instances of 
longevity among the resident population are quite common. Foreign- 
ers and natives of the higher latitudes experience no inconvenience in 
becoming acclimated, and encouuter exposure to all the vicissitudes of 
the weather with the same impunity as the native population. Sun- 
strokes seldom or never occur, and no enervating effects of climate 
are experienced. 

Alexandria, the parish site, situated upon the west bank of Red 
river, 150 miles above its mouth, is a town of considerable importance, 
and has a population of 2000. It stands at the head of low water 
navigation on Red river, and is the business centre and chief shipping 
point of an immensely fertile region. It contains numerous churches- 
and schools, and is rapidly improving. Pineville, on the opposite side 
of the river, is the second town in the parish, and has about 600 in- 
habitants. A large business is done by the merchants of this place, 
and it ships a large quantity of cotton. Cheneyville, Kanomie, Cotile 
and Lecomte are villages of some note. All of them are situated in 
the valley section. 

The soils of this region may be classed under three heads : 



THE PARISHES OF LOUISIANA. 87 



1. The alluvial is the most productive, and is equally adapted to the 
production of the great staples, cotton and sugar. 

2. The uplands and creek bottoms, on which the soil is generally a 
sandy loam, varying in depth, quite productive, easy of cultivation,, 
and yielding oftentimes a bale of cotton and forty bushels of corn per 
acre. 

3. The pine lands, consisting of a thin soil with an under stratum of 
clay, susceptible of being highly enriched by manuring or by the 
application of the ordinary fertilizers. 

In the bottoms are found a variety of the oak, cypress, ash, hack- 
berry, elm, gum, Cottonwood, beach, willow and many other kinds. 
On the hills, the yellow pine constitutes almost the entire growth. 
The saw mills supply the home demand for lumber, and ship large 
quantities to points on the Red and Mississippi rivers. 

NATCHITOCHES 

is one of the oldest parishes in the State, and, although nearly one- 
half of its area is hilly pine land, it ranks third in population and fifth 
in cotton production among the upland parishes. The chief area of 
production is the portion of Red river bottom embraced in its limits 
and the oak uplands adjoining the same on either side. 

South of the old town of Natchitoches, and outside of Red river 
bottom, the uplands are mainly of the pine hills character, varied only 
in the hilly, broken country on Bayou Casatche by the occasional ap- 
pearance of limestone, and of lime-loving trees in the deep, narrow 
valleys, while the hills are often capped with ferruginous sandstone. 
The bluff banks of the river at Natchitoches and Grand Ecoi^e are 
crowned with pines. To the northwestward, however, beyond Spanish 
Lake, the pine is absent and rolling oak-uplands, with an admixture 
of short-leaf pine among the timber, and with a reddish loam soil of 
fair fertility, take the place of the pine hills. These oak-uplands are 
substantially identical in character with those of the adjoining par- 
ishes of Sabine and DeSoto. 

North of Red river the long-leaf pine appears on the bluff at 
Campte, forming a tract isolated from the main body of the long-leaf 
pine hills farther north and east, by the low lands bordering on Black 
Lake, with their growth of oaks and short-leaf pine. 

Seven-eighths of all the land cultivated is the red alluvial soil of the 
Red river bottom. The timber is pecan, oak, ash, elm, hackberry, 
locust, cypress. The (front land) soil is porous, as much as twenty 
feet in depth, and well drained. The crops grown are cotton, corn 
sweet potatoes and tobacco for home use. Cotton and sweet potatoes 
are the chief crops, the former occupying two-thirds of the cultivated 
land. The soil of 

RED RIVER PARISH 

is about one-third alluvial soil, and the remainder good uplands. 

A prominent public man of this parish writes: 

"The Red river, as crooked as a rain's horn, thereby giving it a river 
front three rimes its direct length, flows directly through it, and its 
alluvial lands are justly celebrated as the richest in the world. 

u Besides these alluvial lauds of the Red river, the eastern portion of 
the parish, known as the ' Hill,' is very productive, and is settled 
with an intelligent and thrifty population, the descendants of the best 
blood of Georgia, Virginia and the Carolinas and Alabama. 



88 LOUISIANA. 



"Our parish site — Coushatta — is one of the most thriving towns in 
America. With the carpenter's hammer sounding on all sides, you 
would imagine you were in Leadville. 

"As to tlie healthfulness of our people, I think it will compare with 
any locality in the cotton States. We have some malarious fever, but 
it is easily handled. 

" There are thousands of acres of land which can be bought improved, 
and unimproved, but the improved lands are raising in value. 

" Churches and schools are building up all over the parish. 

" Labor is good. The black man finds he is protected in life and prop- 
erty, and it is quickening his energies. The white people are all hard 
working and industrious in their various callings, from the field to the 
pulpit. 

" Chinese are not wanted here. The steady Caucasians, be they from 
the Scandinavians, the Anglo-Saxons, the Gauls or the Hebrews, are 
welcome. A few more of Africa's noble sons could find employment, 
judging from the encouragement given those here. His color recom- 
mends him. No questions are asked. This country is the ideal " Kan- 
sas" of the black man. If he don't take care of himself, the whites will 
for him. Without corn, meat, horse, home or land, he is everywhere 
welcome, and has never to tramp for a job or a home." 

BIENVILLE, LINCOLN AND JACKSON PARISHES. 

These three parishes lie together in north Louisiana. They are in 
the formation known as the good uplands, the south portions of Bien- 
ville and Jackson extending into the long leaf pine region. There are 
no large streams in these parishes, but hundreds of creeks and branches 
and innumerable natural springs of clear water. 

The land is rolling and in some places broken, but admirabl}' adapted 
to farming rather than planting on a large scale. 

The famous Bed Lands in this secti >n, grow the small grains and 
grasses to perfection. The farmers grow their supplies at home, live 
well, and are more independent than the planters in the alluvial 
lands. The Protestant religion prevails, and churches of all denomi- 
nations and public and private schools are established in every 
neighborhood. More than two-thirds of the land in this section is 
covered with the native growth of oak, hickory and pine. Communi- 
cation with market is by lied river on the west, and the Ouachita on 
the east. 

The soil generally is an undulating sandy loam, with a sandy sub- 
soil, some portions being stiff mulatto soil. All heavily timbered. 
The numerous streams abound in fish of various kinds. The water 
used is principally well water. Settlers find no difficulty in getting 
good water wherever they may choose to dig a well. The depths of 
wells vary from 20 to CO feet. 

The health of this section is equal to that of any part of the United 
States. 

Private land can be purchased, improved and unimproved, in tracts 
to suit purchasers, varying in price from one to five dollars per acre. 
Improved land can be bought from two to five dollars per acre, and 
the purchaser can have time to make the money on the land to pay for 
it. Improved fenced land may be rented from two to three dollars per 
acre or one-third of corn and one-fourth of cotton. 



TEE PARISHES OF LOUISIANA. 89 



A large portion of these lands still belong to the Government, and 
may be bought at $1.25 per acre or entered as homesteads. 

The laborers employed generally are colored men and boys. The 
price paid for laborers varies from $5 to $12 50 per month. Laborers 
can work all the year on the farm with safety. Industrious white men 
can find employment at all seasons of the year. Mechanics charge 
from $1 50 to $3 per day. Not much demand fos their labor. A few 
immigrants are coming in yearly from Alabama, Georgia and Missis- 
sippi. 

These parishes are well adapted to stock raising. The summer 
range is exceedingly fine, and the f1»stor and Dougdemonia swamps 
are covered with switch cane, which furnishes fine grazing for cattle in 
winter. 

There are now in successful operation many water gin and mills. 
With a little skill and ingenuity in damming, many of the creeks 
would furnish water power sufficient to run almost any kind of ma- 
chinery. Cotton and wool factories could be established with a fair 
prospect of sucess. Also shoe, harness, saddle and wagon factories. 

The products best adapted to cultivation are cotton, corn, sugar 
•cane, oats, sweet potatoes, Irish potatoes and almost every variety of 
vegetables. Peaches, apples, plums, grapes and figs do well. 

A large majority of the inhabitants are white. They are thrifty, 
industrious, intelligent and law-abiding citizens, who would welcome 
Northern or European immigrants. 

The county site of Bienville is Sparta; of Lincoln, Vienna; and of 
Jackson, Vernon. 

BOSSIER, WEBSTER, CLAIBORNE AND UNION PARISHES. 

These parishes, lying contiguous to each along the northern boundary 
of Louisiana, from the 'Red river on the west to the Ouachita river on 
the east, should be described together. 

The formation of the soil is the same — "good uplands" — and their 
northern boundary is the southern boundary of the State of Arkansas. 
Their altitude is from three to five hundred feet above the level of the 
sea . 

The county town of Bossier is Bellevue ; of Webster, Miuden ; of 
Claiborne, Homer; and of Union, Farmerville. 

While there is a limited amount of alluvial land lying on the large 
streams in Bossier, Webster and Union parishes, the main formation 
of the section is "good uplands 1 '. 

The general features of the landscape present a series of successive 
hills, not precipitous, but tor the most part gently undulating and oc- 
casionally relieved by broad stretches of level uplands and the fre- 
quent recurrence of running streams of pure, limpid water, which 
course through valleys of fertile bottom land. The forests everywhere 
abound in the most desirable and useful timber indigenous to our 
southern soil. Yellow pine, many varieties of the oak, ash, hickory, 
•elm, walnut, gums and cypress are found in profusion and of quality 
unsurpassed for the different uses to which they may be applied. 

T fie soil, for the most part, is a rich sandy loam, varying in color 
and tenacity in different localities, easy to cultivate, and when not ex- 
hausted by long-continued cropping, liberally responds to the hand of 
industrious labor. Cotton, corn, peas, oats, wheat, rye, sweet and 
Irish potatoes, sorghum and sugar cane, pumpkins, turnips, melons 
and almost every species of garden vegetables are raised ; and not a 



90 LOUISIANA. 



few only, but nearly all of these are staple crops on every -well 
managed farm. For the first eight or ten years after clearing, land 
here will produce on an average, without rest and manure, half bale of" 
cotton per acre, or 20 bushels of corn, or 200 bushels of potatoes, or 
200 gallons of molasses, 25 bushels of oats and an after crop of peas. 
This is a reasonable estimate ; many fields of uplands have, with ordi- 
nary cultivation, and without fertilizing, produced a bale of cotton per 
acre, or 30 bushels of corn. 

It is true that learned and skillful physicians are dispensing the heal- 
ing art among the people here, but it is just as true that none of tbeni 
are growing rich from the income of professional service. Good health 
has been the boon of the people since the first settlement. The abund- 
ant supply of water from wells and springs, uniformly clear, cool and 
pure; the undulating surface of the land; the pure, dry atmosphere, 
all combine to render this climate unsurpassed in salubrity. Fatal ep- 
idemics have never visited this section, and a case of sunstroke, per- 
haps, was never known to occur. For people to visit the highlands and 
seaside resorts of other States, seeking pleasure and recreation, is not 
uncommon, but to do so as valetudinarians would be considered rather 
ludicrous here. 

The present population is about equalty divided between the whites 
and blacks. 

The resident white people are remarkably homogeneous, being emi- 
grants, or their descendants, from the Southern States east of the Mis- 
sissippi river. They are intelligent, industrious, law-abiding, patriotic, 
and in a high sense moral in their deportment. Hospitality to stran- 
gers is not the least of their virtues, and well-behaved visitors from 
other localities always find a cordial welcome. 

The colored people are orderJy, cheerful, moderately industrious, re- 
spectful and friendly in their intercourse with the whites. Many of 
them are land owners, and are peacefully and quietly cultivating their 
farms, being prosperous in business, contented and happy. This is a 
country of farmers, not of planters, and the idea of a "landed aristoc- 
racy," if it ever obtained, has long since become obsolete. 

Lands are remarkably cheap, considering their intrinsic value. Ex- 
cellent woodlands can be purchased in tracts of any size desired, at 
from $2 to $3 per acre, and improved places with good residence and 
outbuildings and fences at from $5 to $7. The payments can be ar- 
ranged on the most accommodating terms, running through a series of 
several years. 

Land rent ranges from $2 to $5 per acre, $3 being the average price. 
Many prefer to give one-third of the corn and one-fourth of the cotton 
which may be gathered off the laud. The Federal government still 
owns much land that is subject to entry by settlers, and the State a 
much larger amount; but most of the latter is bottom land, bordering 
the large watercourses and subject to annual overflow. Much valuable 
upland is held by the Vicksburg, Shreveport and Texas Railroad, which 
will doubtless be ofleied for sale on terms both reasonable and accom- 
modating. 

The religious sentiment of the people is Protestant. Nearly the en- 
tire population attend i - eligious services on the Sabbath at their various 
denominational houses of worship. 

Public and private schools are in every neighborhood. 

The people of this section have always placed a high estimate upon 
the advantages of education. They are very generally a reading com- 



THE PARISHES OF LOUISIANA. 9L 



inanity, and books and newspapers are to bo found 'in almost every 
house. 

Doubtless four-fifths of the adult male population are engaged in 
daily manual labor. Idleness is justly considered reproachful, and 
the best citizens — many of them above the fear of want — are hard- 
working, industrious men. The mass of the whites, being economical 
and thrifty, have some capital of their own, and when not land owners 
prefer to rent the laud they cultivate. Where they choose to work for 
wages the white laborer readily receives $15 a month and board. For 
the most part they are treated as members of the employer's family, 
and have many social advantages. 

Field work is continued during the entire year without jeopardy to- 
the health, and with but little discomfort to the white laborer. There 
is really less sickness here in midsummer than in the fall or early 
spring. The colored population, however, furnish the majority of those 
who work for wages. These receive from $10 to $15 per month and 
board, according to qualifications and character. But most farms are 
cultivated on t lie share system: the proprietor furnishing the land, 
stock and implements and the laborer his services, and boarding him- 
self and family ; the crop, when gathered, being equally divided be- 
tween them. As this, the most common method of contract;, relates 
only to the cultivation of the soil and the housing of the crops, pro- 
prietors experience great annoyance and vexation in keeping their 
farms in good repair, since, for all other kinds of labor, supplementary 
contracts must be made; and the average negro, unless urged to exer- 
tion by the necessity of his condition, is unwilling, for any reasonable 
consideration, to respond to these additional demands. It is a just re- 
mark that several months of each year are virtually wasted in com- 
parative idleness by the large majority of this class of laborers. A 
large increase of white laborers is greatly desired, and they would 
readily find constant, pleasant and profitable employment. Mechanics- 
are paid from $2 to $'-i a day, but usually prefer to work by the job. 
Lumber is abundant, and sells at the numerous saw-mills for $10 per 
thousand feet. 

There has been little immigration for the last ten years, yet the popu- 
lation has steadily and rapidly increased during that period of time 
from the natural growth, which is the best evidence both of the 
healthful ness and contentment of the people. 

Neat cattle and swine thrive aud are extensively raised. Improved 
breeds have been very generally introduced, aud have become so com- 
mon that "pedigree" no longer enhances the price. Among the rural 
population dressed meats may be quoted at from 3 to 5 cents for beef, 
4 to 5 cents for pork, and mutton 50 cents per quarter. Residents of 
towns have to pay somewhat higher for the convenience of a regular 
market. 

In a country where many beeves are slaughtered, hides must be 
plentiful. This fact, coupled with that of the inexhaustible supply of 
tan-bark which the forest affords, would suggest that the tanning of 
leather would be a most profitable business in this parish. Happily, 
experience has already demonstrated the success of experiments in this 
department of industry, for our few small domestic tanneries are driv- 
ing imported leather from the home market. 

Some years ago a corporation erected at great expense, in the town 
of Arizona, and operated successfully for a long time, a large cotton 
factory. This costly structure, with all its machinery, is now idle. 



92 LOUISIANA, 



Public steam gins and grist mills have almost entirely superceded the 
old-fashioned horse-power running gear formerly attached to every 
plantation gin-house. The toll for grinding corn is uniformly the 
eighth part, and for ginning and packing cotton it varies between the 
fifteenth and the eighteenth. 

This section may be justly recommended for successful bee culture. 
Much honey is annually extracted from the numerous hives, and some 
enterprising bee-keepers make it a commodity of profitable export. 
The primitive "gums" are mostly used, and one such with a colony of 
bees sells here for $1 50. 

Poultry of all descriptions can be raised here in unlimited quantity, 
and fowls abound in every barn-yard. 

Many kinds of choice fruit trees luxuriate in this soil and climate. 
The scuppernong grape has been extensively cultivated, and several 
fine vineyards containing from two to seven acres each, with flourish- 
ing vines trained on galvanized wire, maybe seen in and near the town 
of Homer. On a smaller scale, they are scattered throughout the rural 
districts. Hundreds of gallous of this delicious wine are manufactured 
from the products of these vineyards, which yield a handsome revenue 
to the proprietors. 

The fruit canning business presents a most tempting inducement to 
those skilled in that art to establish a factory here, as thousands of 
bushels of delicious peaches are annually fed to hogs. 

The products are cotton, corn, rice, potatoes, tobacco, oats, wheat — 
and sugar for home consumption. Small grains do well, especially in 
the famous "red lands." Peaches, plums, pears, apples, melons and 
grapes flourish. 

The good uplands, with ordinary cultivation, will produce three- 
fourths of a bale of cotton, twenty-five bushels of corn, thirty-five, 
bushels of rice, two hundred bushels of potatoes, or three-fourths of 
a hogshead of sugar. With fertilizers and good cultivation, these fig- 
ures may be doubled. 

While lands are so very cheap, if honest and industrious emigrants 
from other localities will turn their attention to these salubrious up- 
lands, they will surely find remunerative employment, pleasant homes 
and a cordial welcome from an intelligent, thrifty and upright people. 

CADDO, DkSOTO, SABINE AND VERNON PARISHES. 

These three parishes are bounded on the east by Red river, and the 
west by the State of Texas. The parish of Caddo occupies the north- 
west corner of Louisiana, and DeSoto, Sabine and Vernon lie south of 
it in the order named. The main formation, except in Vernon, is good 
uplands, but there are fine bodies of alluvial land along the Red river 
in Caddo and DeSoto, and along the Sabine river in Sabine parish. 

There is also a body of long leaf pine hills in the southeast portion 
of Sabine parish. These parishes extend from the 33d parallel on the 
north below the 81st on the south. 

The New Orleans Pacific Railroad passes through all except Vernon, 
affording additional transportation facilities to those afforded by the 
waterways. The principal town of Caddo is Shreveport; of DeSoto, ' 
Mansfield; of Sabine, Manny; of Vernon Leesville. 

The principal kinds of timber are red oak, post oak, hickory, pine, 
"black-jack, with some gum and dog wood on the uplands. On the 
"bottom lands the principal kinds of timber are cottonwood, ash, hack- 
berry, cypress, gum, black oak and willow. 



THE PARISHES OF LOUISIANA. 93 



The lands are classified into high or uplands, and valley or bottom 
lands. The hill lands arc- generally level, and when fresh are quite 
productive without the aid of fertilizers; when old and worn, their 
productiveness is restored by the use of cotton seed as a fertilizer. 

The valley lands are of great fertility and productiveness, not sur- 
passed by any in the State or United States. 

The products best adapted to cultivation are corn, cotton, oats, rye, 
barley and millet. The average yield of corn per acre on the rich 
valley lands is fifty bushels; of cotton, one bale per acre, weighing 
500 pounds; oats, rye and barley, twenty-five bushels; of millet, two 
tons per acre. 

The healthfulness of the climate is not surpassed by any in the State. 

The kinds of drinking water used are, in the uplands, spring and 
well water, and on the bottom lands, cistern water. 

The average temperature, summer and winter, is as follows : June, 
76°; July, 83°; August, 78°; December, 47°; January, 55°; February, 53°. 

Almost every nationality in Europe is represented, with a greater 
proportion of Germans. The people are generally moral, industrious 
and prosperous. 

All kinds of lands are offered for sale, improved and unimproved, or 
wild lands. Private lands in any sized tracts can be purchased on the 
uplands at from $1 to $5 per acre ; on the bottom lands, at from $5 to 
$10 per acre. Improved uplands can be bought at prices from $1 50 
to $5 per acre; improved bottom lands at prices from $15 to $25 per 
acre. Uplands can be leased at from $1 to $2 per acre; bottom lands 
at from $5 to $10 per acre. 

There are United States Government lands for sale, as well as State 
lands, railroad lands and school lauds. The State lands are now 
offered for sale at seventy-five cents per acre. 

Every portion of this country is well and abundantly watered, and 
where natural springs do not abound, well water can be easily obtained 
by digging from twenty to forty feet. 

The greatest variety of fruit growth is abundant on its entire sur- 
face. 

The general quality of the soil is a rich loam on a clay foundation, 
producing mainly the great staple cotton, corn, oats, barley, rye and 
sugar cane, to which much attention has of late years been given for 
domestic purposes, the yield being from 250 to 350 gallons of syrup per 
acre, and this of the best quality. 

The' cane is never injured by frosts, and the growth will compare 
favorably with that of the lower Mississippi, though of course not so 
rich in its saccharine qualities. 

Rice is at times cultivated for home purposes, in certain localities is 
a sure crop, the yield being from fifteen to twenty-five bushels in the 
rough, per acre; and it is only limited ou account of the want of the 
necessary cleaning machinery. 

Less than 10 per cent is under cultivation, and there is not more than 
5 per cent of this aiea of uncultiyable waste or swamp; and there is 
hardly to be found a quarter section of land in any portion on which 
an industrious farmer could not establish a good homestead for his 
household. 

Tobacco grows here of the finest quality, far excelling that of the 
Connecticut valley; not subject to depredations of the tobacco worm, 
the same plant yielding two cuttings during the season. From 800 to 



•94 LOUISIANA. 



1000 pounds can.be readily raised per acre from the first cutting, and 
half that amount from the second. 

This is the land of the sweet potato, which here arrives at its great- 
est perfection — 200 to 250 bushels per acre being a common yield. 

The mineral productions are not extensive, but coal deposits are 
found in many locations, extending from the Sabine river to Bayou 
Pierre, cropping out on the surface in several localities, five to six feet 
thick. 

This coal is bituminous lignite, rich in illuminating gas, burning well 
in the ordinary grate; but wood being abundant in every section, no 
-attention has been given to its development. 

Iron ore is in large deposits in the Dolet hills of the Red river slopes, 
the quality identically like that near Jefferson, Texas, valuable for 
many special purposes, with wood abundant for smelting. 

Near the town of Mansfield are indications of superphosphate, re- 
sembling very much the celebrated South Carolina deposits on the 
Cooper and Ashley rivers. 

The lakes and bayous afford splendid resorts for fishing during the 
spring and summer, abounding in many varieties; and during the win- 
ter wild fowl of every kind are so abundant that they can be bought 
lor a mere trifle, the largest mallard duck selling at ten cents, and 
brant aud wild geese at from twenty-five to fifty cents each. • 

There is no section of Louisiana which has been so much oveilooked 
by the tide of emigrants seeking the cotton belt. 

The raising of stock is cheap and its results certain — cattle, hogs and 
sheep requiring but little care and attention, and even during the win- 
ter months all do well, subsisting on the natural and abundant resources 
of our forests. 

Here cotton and woolen factories would yield magnificent returns 
from their investment, as all the supplies would be at their very doors 
and ready transportation would be afforded their surplus productions 
to the market at New Orleans and the Western cities. Previous to the 
civil war but little attention was paid to the cultivation of fruit, but 
there has always been an abundance of peaches of the largest aud 
most delicious quality, and all these the simple products of the seed. 

But now a better spirit prevails and a taste for diversified fruit cul- 
ture has been developed, and the apple and pear are seen on every 
side, and so far the climate proves auspicious of their very successful 
culture, and witli proper care and a practical experience in the care of 
the orchard, large rewards may be reasonabty expected from these 
•sources of industry. 

The fig is a never-failing fruit, and its quality the best. 

There are a large number of churches in these parishes. The prin- 
cipal Christian denominations are Baptist, Methodist, Presbyterian, 
Catholic and Episcopal. There are public schools taught in every sec- 
tion, and with the small means available for the purpose at present 
the results are flattering. These schools are given out in the interest 
•of both white aud black, but taught separately. There is located at 
Mansfield a college for the education of females, and also at Keachie, 
northwest of Mansfield, twenty miles — both institutions with a corps 
-of good teachers — thus affording eveiy facility for a finished course of 
instruction in all the departments of female education. 



THE PARISHES OF LOUISIANA. 95 



VERNON. 

The parish of Vernon lies to the south of Sabine and to the west of 
Rapides, and extends westward to the river Sabine, the boundary of 
Texas. This parish is noted for the extensive forests of long leaf pine 
with which it is covered. Leesville is the county site. A prominent 
citizen writes: 

"The parish is mostly an upland country, though a good deal of 
lowland and cypress brakes are near the Sabine river. There are 
some prairie lands a few miles northwest, north and south of Leesville 
which are very productive. The large Anacoco creek passes entirely 
through the western part of the parish and affords a good deal of fine 
lands, besides some State lauds well timbered. Numerous creeks run 
through that portion of the parish emptying into the Anacoco, and a 
large number pass through the eastern portion, which empty into the 
Calcasieu river. The lands are well adapted to cotton, corn, potatoes, 
:rice and sugar cane. The total population is about 5000, mostly 
■whites. 

"The farmers are doing well and have settled near the prairie lands, 
and along the creeks and rivers, where they have access to swamp and 
pine lands, though in many instances they have settled in the pine 
woods where they cultivate excellent pine lands and raise stock. The 
surface of the parish is in general rolling and in parts hilly, and the 
.yellow pine grows in abundance. 

"The swamp lands are of two grades — a low stiff bottom land, and a 
high sandy swamp land, and all well timbered with oak. gum, hickory, 
magnolia, ash and various other growths. The immense range for 
stock and pure water in abundance make it all one could desire who 
seeks to combine farming and stock raising. 

" The pine and cypress timber have attracted a good deal of attention 
and a lively business is now going on (especially in pine) running logs 
down the Anacoco creek and Sabine river for the Orange timber mar- 
ket at remunerative prices. This trade is fast increasing. 

" Private lands are almost without a price, there b^ing so much vacant 
public land well adapted to farming, upon which immigrants can settle 
without money or price, free from all fear of being disturbed; for since 
the first settling of this country there are but three or four cases where 
the claims, rights and interest of such settlers have been infringed 
upon by othei parties entering the land. 

"The character of the people is law-abiding and hospitable — but few 
cases ever occur of a grave criminal nature. As proof of this the po- 
lice jury ot the parish levied a tax of only $650 to defray the entire 
•criminal expenses of the parish for the year 1880, deeming it ample for 
that purpose. 

"Agriculture, cutting and running timber to market, and raising stock 
^are the chief employments of the people, and as a general thing they 
.are easy and prosperous. 

"The health of the parish is extremely good. 

"All the creeks furnish fish in abundance. Deer and turkeys are 
plentiful in all localities. A fine corn crop has been made this year, 
which can be had on reasonable terms, and the citizens of the parish 
-are prepared to welcome all who come to look up homes." 

CALDWELL, OUACHITA AND MOREHOUSE PARISHES. 

These parishes are in Northeast Louisiana, and lie along the banks 
•of the Ouachita, from the northern line of Catahoula on the south to 



9G LOUISIANA. 



the State of Arkansas on the north. Their topographical features are 
very similar, the general formation being alluvial along the streams 
and all the elevated lands being classed as " good uplands," except 
the western third of Caldwell, which extends into the long leaf pine 
hills. Most of Western 

CALDWELL 

is a rough, broken, pine country, cut up by the several branches of 
Bayou Castor. On the dividing ridge, between Bayou Castor and 
Washita river, the country is broken and ridgy, especially near the 
Washita, running in the main parallel to that river, on which they 
occasionally form precipitous blufits. These ridges have a dark-colored, 
loamy soil, giving evidence of the presence of lime by the absence of 
the long-leaf pine, and the prevalence of the better class of upland 
oaks, hickory, wild plum and red haw or thorn. The best of this kind 
of country is in the neighborhood of Grandview. Between Grandview 
and Columbia there is a prairie (Prairie Du Cote) about a mile in di- 
ameter, almost round, and with a yellow loam soil. The soil is very 
fertile, and is treeless, except a few hawthorn bushes. East of the 
Washita river is mainly the alluvial bottom, subject to overflow, ex- 
cept a long narrow ridge of upland that runs down between Washita 
and Boeuf rivers, reaching nearly to their junction. 

Ouachita parish is nearly equally divided between upland on the 
west and lowland on the east. 

The northwestern portion has hilly oak uplands with admixture of 
short leaf pine, as in the adjoining part of Union parish. Among the 
oak and hickory timber of these uplands, the large-leaved magnolia 
(Magnolia macroplnjlla) is noteworthy, being rare elsewhere in the 
State. It usually denotes a soil rich in lime, and therefore thrifty. In 
the lowland swamps the genuine tupelo [Ni/ssa uniflora) forms a prom- 
inent (and, in Louisiana, somewhat unusual) feature. 

Between the long leaf pine hills and the oak uplands, west of 
Monroe, there lies an extensive cypress brake, known as Cheuiere an 
Tondre, embracing about seven square miles. Numerous bayous 
emptying into this brake overflow much land, and render it difficult to 
reclaim. 

The area lying east of the Washita river is wholly alluvial, except 
only a narrow upland ridge, with oaks and short leaf pine, which lies 
between the river and Bayou Lafourche. Much of the alluvial land is 
above overflow. This is" especially the case with " the Island," lying 
between the Washita river and Bayou De Siard, which is considered 
the garden spot of the region, producing both corn and cotton. 

On the Washita river, near Monroe, the prevalent timber growth is 
water oak, sycamore, honey locust and black locust, indicating a soil 
containing much lime. 

The river and navigable bayous render the alluvial country very easy 
of access, and afford great facilities for transportation of produce. 

MOREHOUSE 

includes more varieties of land than any other parish in the State. It 
has some cypress swainps, some lowlands or alluvial bottoms, pine 
lands, uplands and even prairie. The bottoms are the most abun- 
dant and cover about two-thirds of the parish, the uplands nearly one- 
third, while the prairies amount to only a few thousand acres. 

The general topography of the country is a ridge, covered with pine, 
running down the centre of the parish from north to south and sloping. 



THE PARISHES OF LOUISIANA. 97 



towards lowlands on each side of it. On the west is the Bayou Bar- 
tholomew bottom ; on the east the Boeuf river bottom, a large portion 
of which consists of cypress swamps, subject to overflow, and there- 
fore very thinly settled and very little cultivated. The most pros- 
perous section is along Bayou Bartholomew. The country is well 
settled here, open to trade, in easy communication with the markets, 
and not subject to overflow. Here are situated the larger plantations, 
-as well as many small farms, cultivated by their owners, white men, 
and producing all that is needed in the way of supplies, such as pork, 
oorn, etc. 

Nearly all the lands in Morehouse are fertile, but there is great di- 
versity in their productiveness. The best lands are those of the Bayou 
Bartholomew bottom. Those on Bceuf river are too low and swampy 
for cultivation, while the uplands, being largely pine and w T oods, are 
oiot as fertile or productive. 

The uplands, however, are good second-rate laud, and while they 
are not as prolific in cotton — producing ouly about half as much as the 
bottoms— they are fully as good for corn, and better for fruit, vines, etc. 

Very little cotton is raised on them, except on new lauds — corn, oats, 
etc, being the usual crops. The hill lands have one advantage, that of 
not sending forth as luxuriant a foliage as the bottoms, so that less 
labor is required to keep the crop in order. The common estimate is 
that a hand can cultivate fully 50 per cent, more of uplands than bot- 
tom land. This fact makes the hill country a favorite section for rais- 
ing corn and such crops. 

A very small proportion of the parish is cultivated, not more than 
one-eighth, while one-third could easily be worked with scarcely any 
expense in the way of draining, leveeiug, etc. 

The best planting sections are the Bayou Bartholomew country, Oak 
Ridge, Gum Swamp and Prairie Mer Rouge, some of which regions 
boast of one and a quarter bales of cotton to the acre. 

In these parishes some land is still held by both the Federal and 
State governments, mainly in the pine ridge section, where there are 
many excellent saw-mill sites to be purchased. This land is high and 
healthy, well watered and adapted to nearly all kinds of crops, and 
exceedingly inviting to the newcomer. From private parties a great 
deal of good land can here be purchased at the rate of $1 per acre. 

The general price of lands, however, is as follows : 

First class open lands, with good improvements, houses, dwellings, 
etc., $20 to $30 per acre. 

First-class wild land, $4 to $6. 

Most of the land is leased by the year, when the prices are: 

For improved lands, in small tracts, one-fourth the crop, or from $4 
to $6 per acre. 

For large plantations, with dwellings, gins, cabins and all the ne- 
cessities for the thorough cultivation of the soil, from $3 to $4 per acre. 

There is plenty of labor, both for the saw-mills and the farms and 
plantations. Agricultural labor on the large plantations is mainly 
negro, while the small farms are cultivated mostly by their owners, 
white faimers. Wages are liberal, but the negroes generally prefer to 
•cultivate on the share system, and a majority of them work on shares. 
7 



5 



98 LOUISIANA. 



The receipts of a laborer vary as he works well or as the season proves 
favorable, but the usual estimate is that an industrious hand can make 
from eight to ten bales of cotton and from 150 to 200 bushels of corn a 
year without difficulty. 

The estimated yield of good land per acre is, for excellent alluvia! 
land, one bale of cotton per acre, or thirty-five bushels of corn, or 
forty bushels of oats ; and for the uplands, ^ to i bale. 

There is very little stock-raising although canebrakes afford an ex- 
cellent range for cattle, while the hill lauds are admirably adapted for 
sheep. 

This section is well timbered with all the trees known in northern 
Louisiana and southern Arkansas, among which are pine, cypress, 
hickory, dogwood, various kinds of oak, sassafras, sweet gum, osage 
orange and black walnut. Lumber is abundant and cheap, pine selling 
at $10 per thousand feet and cypress at from $12 50 to $15. 

Peaches, apples, pears and plums flourish here. The hill lands are 
much better for fruit raising than the rich bottoms. 

They are admirably adapted for the cultivation of the grape, many 
iudigenous varieties of which grow here luxuriantly in the forests. 
Among these may be mentioned the grape called the Battura, which 
was discovered here in abundance by the early French settlers. This 
grape is of dark blue hue, grows near the water's edge, and prospers 
when it has been covered by overflow, the grapes bursting forth as 
soon as the Water goes down. 

The larger streams are the Ouachita and Boeuf rivers and Bayou 
Bartholomew, all of which are large and navigable a greater portion 
of the year to steamers carrying 1500 or more bales of cotton. 

There are hundreds of smaller streams, aud a number of lakes full 
of the best eating fish, the trout, bass, bauk and white perch, cat and 
buffalo and bar fish. 

The climate is excellent, and not subject to exti ernes of heat or cold, 
summer or winter. Health good, especially in the upland's. 

Schools and churches are maintained in every neighborhood and 
more advanced institutions of learning are established in Bastrop, 
Columbia and Monroe, the principal towns. Some of the most culti- 
vated people of the South reside in these parishes, and there is no part, 
of America where the immigrant would receive better treatment. 

WEST CARROLL, RICHLAND AND FRANKLTN. 

These parishes are situated in the northeastern part of the Shite, 
between the Mississippi and Ouachita rivers. 

The formation ot their lands are identical. The larger part being 
bluff lands while the lands bordering Bayou Macon on the east, and 
Boeuf river on the west, are alluvial. 

The Shreveport and Pacific Railroad intersects Richland parish and 
its principal towns are Delhi and Rayville, containing from two hun- 
dred to three hundred inhabitants, with schools, churches and all the 
accessories of civilization required by an intelligent and refined com- 
munity. 

These parishes are well watered in every part, The principal 
streams are Bayous Boeuf and Macon, which are navigable in winter 
and spring by large steamboats, affording ample transportation to- 
market for all the products. 



THE PARISHES OF LOUISIANA. 99 



The lands bordering the bayous are as good as any in the State, the 
actual yield, according to the census report, being four-fifths of a bale 
of cotton. While this is the average yield of the entire parish, the 
yield of plantations on the bayons in the alluvial lands often reaches 
one and a half bales of cotton per acre and fifty bushels of corn. 

Only a small proportion of these lands is under cultivation, altho' ; " 
there is not an acre of barren land in its limits. All the land not mil! 1 
cultivation is covered with a heavy growth of magnificent timber, 
among which is found the oak, ash, elm, gum, black walnut, beech, 
magnolia and other growths of alluvial and bluff formations. 

The principal productions ate cotton, corn and sweet potatoes, oats, 
rye. millet and many of the domestic grasses grow well. 

Floyd is the county site of West Carroll and Winnsboro of Franklin 
parish. 

West Carroll lies between Bayous Macon and Bceuf, but includes 
only a narrow belt of alluvium lying along these streams, the main 
body being an upland ridge similar to the Bastrop hills, constituting 
the most northerly portion of the upland peninsula, which, farther 
south, forms part of the parishes of Richland and Franklin, under the 
general designation of " Bayou Macon Hills." This ridge rises rather 
abruptly from the bottom plain of the Bayou Macon to the height of 
twenty feet. It is composed of a sandy, yellow loam, and its eastern 
portion is timbered with short leaf pine. In the western, the post and 
black-jack oaks predominate over the pine. The westward slope, 
towards Bayou Bceuf, is gentle, and the land improves as we descend ; 
the yellow loam subsoil being apparent for some distance into the 
Bceuf alluvial plain. The soil of the latter is highly productive. 

West Carroll is bounded on the north by the State of Arkansas. 
The county site is Floyd. 

The topographical formation of Richland and Franklin is the same. 
Alluvial ami bluff lands. 

These three parishes extend southward from the Arkansas line, a 
distance of 90 miles, to the Ouachita river. 

The general face of Richland parish is level, with an occasional elevation 
of a narrow strip of land eight or ten feet above the general surface. 
In the southwestern part, there is a small portion that is prairie. The 
bottom or swamp lands lie upon the streams and are regarded as the 
most productive, producing one to one and a half bales cotton per acre 
in good seasons and corn and other products in proportion. The 
kinds of timber in abundance are oak, gum, hickory, pine, ash, dog- 
wood, birch. Nearly every species of tree found in the South is here. 

The soil of the parish is well adapted to the growth of all vegetables 
and plants. There are as fine vegetables produced for home consump- 
tion as can be grown in any portion of the Union with little labor. 
Well water is found by digging from fifteen to twenty-five feet. It is 
pure freestone or mixed with lime, iron, copperas, alum. 

There has been but little foreign immigration to these parishes, but 
you will occasionally find some from every nationality here, jnosperiug 
in their vocations. It only requires energy and determination on the 
part of any new settler, occupied with temperance and sobriety to 
soon become independent. 

There can be bought almost any description of land here that is to 
be found anywhere in the State, and as productive. From the rich, 
loose, mellow ridges, easily cultivated and paying handsome returns, to 



100 LOUISIANA. 



the rich hottora and alluvial soil, which is inexhaustible, where im- 
mense crops of corn, cotton, sorghum and potatoes are produced in 
fabulous quantities. The rich hammock lands, only await the axe and 
spade to lay bare the untold productiveness of these hitherto neglected 
mines of wealth. The pine lands are easily brought into cultivation 
and pay large dividends. This soil is more silicious than any other 
to be found, and quite durable, lasting and producing fine crops for 
fifteen or twenty years without manure. 

Many large landholders have both improved and unimproved lands 
that they would dispose of readily j improved from $5 to $15, unim- 
proved from $1 to $5 per acre. 

Fruits and vegetables of all kinds which grow in the temperate zone 
are plentiful at all seasons, and these, as well as a variety of other 
products of garden and field, could be raised for profitable export, bat 
here, us well as elsewhere in the State, the one-crop system handed 
down to us by our fathers prevails, and only immigration bringing in 
new men and advanced ideas, will lift the planters out of the well worn 
and time honored ruts in which they travel. 

The labor upon large plantations is generally performed by negroes, 
The share system generally prevails, but when wages are given they 
range from $12 to $15 per month. 

Many white men cultivate small farms, with their own families, with 
an occasional hired hand. They are almost universally prosperous 
and out of debt, and are really the most independent class of people, 
raising their supplies at home. 

The" health of this section will compare favorably with that of other 
portions of the South, and the climate is not subject to violent ex- 
tremes of heat and cold. Foreigners and immigrants from other 
States already here have found no difficulty in field work at all sea- 
sous. The people desire immigration and will welcome all classes and 
-creeds. 

All forms of religion are tolerated and encouraged, and ministers of 
the gospel are highly respected. 

Educational facilities are as good as any in the State. Public schools 
are kept open three to five months in the year. In most instances 
when the public schools close, private schools are continued during 
the remainder of the year. 

Negro laborers are very good during the planting, working and 
gathering the crop, 'but almost worthless, as far as making improve- 
ments or advancing their or employers' interest. White men can labor 
here the entire year with perfect satety to their health ; in fact the man 
who works every day during the entire year with moderation enjoys 
a greater degree of health than those who only labor as necessity 
forces them. Labor is in great demand, and the supply is wholly in- 
adequate to the demand. 

Market facilities are good. On the north, Vicksbnrg, Shreveport 
and Pacific railroad, east, Bayou Macon, on the south and west, the 
Tensas river and Ouachita river. 

Churches, schools and other evideuces of refinement and civilization 
are seen throughout the entire section. 

Comparatively a small portion of these lands are cultivated. The 
section oilers a grand field for capital and immigration, both of which 
would be welcomed b,y a kind, generous and hospitable people. 



THE PARISHES OF LOUISIANA. 101 



EAST CARROLL, MADISON, TENSAS, CONCORDIA, POINTE 
COUPEE AND WEST BATON ROUGE PARISHES. 

These are all alluvial parishes and famous for their fertility. East 
Carroll, according to the United States Census of 1880, lias a larger 
yield of cotton per acre than any other county in the Southern States. 
This parish is in the extreme northeast corner of the State, bounded 
north by the southern line of Arkansas on parallel 33° and east by the 
Mississippi river. 

The other parishes lie due south of East Carroll, in the order named 
above, and extend along the "west bank of the Mississippi river, a dis- 
tance of more than two hundred and fifty miles. 

The Avhole body of Land contained in these parishes is probably 
unsurpassed for fertility by any in the world. Prior to the war, when 
the levees were secure, arable lands were worth from $50 to $125 per 
acre. They can now be bought from $5 to $25 per acre. 

This depreciation in value, is due to the unstable condition of the 
levees. All of these parishes have been devastated with periodical 
floods since the war, and although not overflowed every year, the back 
lands are considered unsafe for extended planting operations. The 
entire river front is cultivated in the staple crops of the State. West 
Baton Rouge and Pointe Coupee produce sugar, as well as cotton, 
Avhile the parishes northward grow cotton only as a money crop. 

The highest land lies upon the bank of the river and the drainage is 
to the rear, the lands becoming lower until they reach the wooded 
swamp two or three miles back. These swamps are covered with a 
heavy, growth of cypress, oak, ash and gum, and must soon again 
become valuable for their timber, which is available in the summer 
and fall, although covered with water in winter and spring. 

The field for speculation in lumber is open to the capitalist familiar 
with the business. From June until December the swamps are suffi- 
ciently dry to admit hauling with the aid of ox teams and timber 
wheels. From February until May, when the crevasse water inun- 
dates the swamp, it is sufficiently deep to admit of floating the timber. 
Portable saw mills might be constructed at convenient points. Lum- 
ber is in great demand, and none equals that made from cypress for 
building purposes. It is worth from $15 to $30 per 1000 feet, accord- 
ing to quality. Cypress staves for barrels and hogsheads, shingles and 
three-foot boards, pieux or pickets are always in demand and command 
good prices. Their quality and durability are superior to those made 
of any other kind of timber. 

The planters of this section are generally educated and refined. 
They are hospitable and generous. 

The negroes who vastly outnumber them, are now a happy, docile 
and contended people. The " carpet bagger," whose political prefer- 
ment was the fruit of the seeds of dissension, assiduously sown among 
the blacks, has long since departed. 

The county sites of these parishes are Lake Providence, Richmond, 
St. Joseph, Vidalia, New Roads and Port Allen. There are hundreds 
of village landings along this long stretch of river, and steamboats, 
which are nearly always in sight, will land at any plantation. 



102 LOUISIANA, 



This is, without doubt, the easiest country in which to live well. 
The earth, with only half cultivation, yields all field, garden and 
orchard products, all domestic animals increase and fatten on the wild 
growth of the forest and pasture, and game and fish can be taken 
when wanted. 

Both Catholic and Protestant churches are in every parish and sepa- 
rate public and private schools for whites and blacks. West Baton 
Rouge and Pointe Coupee are intersected by the New Orleans and 
Pacific Railroad, and Madison is 'crossed from east to west by the 
Vicksburg, Shreveport and Pacific Railroad. 

In addition to the money crops of sugar and cotton, all of the field 
crops of the North grow to perfection. 

Corn is raised by all planters and tenants. In new laud it produces 
very large crops — 75 bushels to the acre — the yield generally is from 
20 to 40 bushels, according to the laud, culture and season. Corn 
raised here is more wholesome than that brought from the Western 
States. Stock fed on it is rarely, if ever, made sick; whereas, 
Western corn often produces colic with mules and horses, resulting in 
loss. The seed is sown from the 20th of February to the 1st of May. 
But late corn planted in June and July often docs as well; much de- 
pends upon the season. If the soil is kept loose and well pulverized 
at the roots, and thrown up in hills at the foot of the stock, it will 
never suffer from drouth and never fire. 

Cow peas are planted in corn lands about the middle of May. The 
vines run over the ground and cover it by the month of August with a 
thick foliage, so dense and runners so thick that the rays of the sun 
never penetrate. In September and early in October these vines and 
leaves are cut or raked up, and after several days of exposure and dry- 
ing are housed or stacked for hay. It makes a healthy feed for stock : 
they keep fat on it during the winter and relish it to the end. The 
culture of the pea has another advantage. It renews the ground and 
returns to it all the nutritious substance taken from it by the sugar 
cane, the cotton or corn stock. Hence, it is considered to be the best, 
cheapest aud most reliable fertilizer. 

The richest and most delicate nut in the world is the pecan. The 
tree reaches an enormous size, its trunk measuring fifteen feet in cir- 
cumference, its height reaching one hundred and twenty-five feet, its 
shade at noon-day covering a circle of one hundred and fifteen feet in 
diameter. For grandeur and magnificence it is the peer among the 
many fine specimens of vegetation in Louisiana. It will bear the 
seventh year after its growth, very few nuts at first, but increasing an- 
nually. They were in great demand immediately after the war and 
sold for high prices. A planter in West Baton Rouge sold for $500 
worth of pecans in 18G5, gathered from thirty odd trees. One tree 
bore five barrels, which sold for $35 per barrel. The same pecans last 
season brought from $12 to $15 per barrel. 

Considering the little care that is taken of live stock, it is surprising 
that it should increase as it does. Few indeed have attempted to im- 
prove the breed. Cows and their calves, even in the winter time, are 
rarely fed. In the fall, generally not before December, cold weather 
does but little damage to vegetation. The usual length of winter is 
from December 1 to the 15th of February. During these months cat- 
tle require but very little feeding; they find sustenance on the fat ac- 
cumulated in the preceding autumn. If the planter resides in near 



THE PARISHES OF LOUISIANA. 103 



proximity to a cane-brake, where switch-cane grows wild or where his 
stock may range in the open woods, then lie may be certain that the 
approach of spring they will return without losing a pound of flesh. 
These lands yield an average of 500 or 600 pounds of lint cotton or 
forty bushels of corn to the acre under proper cultivation. The 
owners are prosperous and the laborers contented. There has been 
little or no political or social disturbance here. The races are on the 
best of terms; the relations of employer and employe are well-defined 
and satisfactory. Altogether, the cultivated and the overflowed dis- 
tricts present about as vivid a contrast as can be formed with pros- 
perity and desolation. 

The proprietors plant in three different ways — the wage, the share, 
and the tenant plan. The wages for regular hired labor averages 
seventy-five cents a day, the laborer buying his own supplies. The 
share laborer receives land, dwelling, team, tools, seed, fire-wood, and 
every necessary to make a crop, and gives half of what he makes to 
the proprietor. The tenant rents land, furnishes his own team, 
etc., and pays the owner eighty pounds of lint cotton per acre as 
rent. These three plans, so different in detail, all come to about the 
same thing in the end, except in the cases of some exceptionally 
thrifty tenants. The day laborer, counting in extra wages in chopping 
and picking time, makes about $250 per annum, and this is substan- 
tially what the share laborer and the average tenant make. There are 
instances where tenants, by intelligence, industry and economy have 
accumulated an independence and are now well-to-do. White men 
can do this, but the average negro never thinks of to-morrow, 
and he is consequently a mere hand-to-mouth, though comfortable, 
liver at all times. This is the fault of the individual, however, and 
not of the system. The system is liberal enough — far more than the 
system in any other agricultural country. It offers to honest industry 
and intelligent thrift the finest promise that is offered anywhere in the 
civilized world to men without capital. The share laborer on the 
great cotton plantations can, without any capital except that of his 
naked muscle, earn as good a living and as large a pot for a rainy day 
as the farmer in England with $1000 in money to start with — yes, 
larger. 

The hackneyed old fable that white men cannot do field-work in the 
South ought to be exploded by this time, especially Avlien statistics 
show that three-fifths of the cotton produced in the United States is 
pi-oduced by white labor. 

Immigrants are wanted here, and they will receive a cordial wel- 
come whether capitalists or laborers. Small capitalists could make 
splendid investments at this time, and no man who desires to work at 
fair wages need be idle even for one day. Parties who wish to work on 
shares are furnished with comfortable houses, team, tools, Qrewood 
and a garden spot free of charge, and those who wish to lease are of- 
fered every facility, and advances are made to them on the most rea- 
sonable terms; in fact, a man can come here without a dollar, and. 
lease land, purchase mules and tools and get his supplies advanced to 
him for the year on credit, and if he is any account can at least make 
his living and pay for his team and tools the first year, and after that 
his success depends upon himself, for it is assured, if he will do his 
duty. Fertilizers are used to a very limited extent, but experience 
has proven that when used, the results have been splendid and. pay a 
very handsome profit. 



104 LOUISIANA. 



GRANT, WINN AND CATAHOULA PARISHES. 

These parishes lie together near the center of Louisiana, between 
parallels 31° and 32°. 

Grant and Winn are located in the long leaf pine hills, and although 
Catahoula is regarded as a pine woods parish, a large part of the 
parish is alluvial and some bluff and good uplands. All of these 
parishes are heavily timbered. 

The hill portion is a succession of elevations, interspersed with val- 
leys and bottoms, and intersected by numerous creeks, some of which 
are fed by springs of pure water. The swamp is level alluvial land,, 
intersected by numerous rivers and bayous and dotted with lakes, 
some of which are beautiful. 

In the swamp region are found nearly all the valuable varieties of 
oaks, also the ash, sweet gum, hackberry, maple and persimmon. In 
the hills, in addition to the varieties mentioned, there are poplar,. 
sumac, sassafras, hickory, magnolia and vast' forests of pine trees.: 
The soil of the swamp is exceedingly fertile, but contains no minerals,, 
that of the hills is generally a sandy loam, based upon red or yellow 
clay, with rocks suitable for building purposes, cropping out on the 
hillsides. The soil of the numerous valleys in the hill region is allu- 
vian, and very productive. Coal has been found and traces of iron 
ore ; also chalk, potter's clay and kaolin. That there is much sulphur 
is evinced by the numerous sulphur and salt springs, two of which,, 
the white sulphur and the castor sulphur, are justly noted for their 
healing properties. The mineral resources have not been developed. 
Large quantities of marble have been discovered in Winn. 

All the products suitable to this latitude cau be grown, but the fol- 
lowing are best adapted to cultivation : Cotton, corn, peas, sugar cane,, 
oats, tobacco, rice, potatoes and melons. 

In the hills the average yield of cotton per acre is about fifteen 
bushels; of cotton, about 1000 pounds of seed cotton. In the swamp 
the average yield of corn is about thirty-five bushels per acre, and of 
cotton about one bale. Much of the land will, when properly culti- 
vated, produce from one to two bales of cotton to the acre, and from 
thirty to fifty bushels of corn. Corn was sold last year in the home 
market at from fifty to seventy-five cents per bushel. 

These parishes are about as healthy as any other portion of central 
or northern Louisiana, and in this respect compare favorably with any 
other portion of the southwest. In the swamp, cistern water is used. 
In the hills good wells and springs are common. The temperature 
rarely ever rises above 90° in summer and seldom falls below freezing 
point In winter. The winters are generally mild enough to admit of 
good gardens. 

The population are mostly white. The negroes arc quiet and peace- 
able, but are unthrifty, and not as industrious as the white laborers of 
the West and North. They are gradually leaving the parish for those 
sections where their race is numerically stronger than the whites. 
The majority of the whites are from the old States of the Union. 
There are many Germans, Irish and Israelites here, who seem to be 
prosperous and contented. 

In the swamp, the public land belongs to the State, and is generally 
too much subject to overflow to be settled. In the hills, there are im- 
mense bodies of public land belonging to the United States, subject to 
entry. Private unimproved lands can be purchased in any sized tracts 
and at from 50 cents to $8 per acre; and improved lands can be 



TEE PARI SEE 8 OF LOUISIANA. 105 



bought at from SI to $15 per acre. Land can be rented at from $1.50 
to $3.50 per acre, but the usual manner of renting is " on the shares." 

Nearly all the religious denominations to be found in the Union are 
represented here; but the vast majority of the religious people belong 
to the Methodist Episcopal Church South and the Missionary Baptists. 

In the swamp blacks are generally employed as laborers. These, 
though not as efficient as is desirable, are far more reliable now than 
they were soon after their emancipation. In the hills the laborers are 
white men from the older States of the Union. People want intelli- 
gent white laborers from other sections of the United States and from 
Europe — men who will come here for the purpose of establishing for 
themselves permanent homes and identifying themselves in interest 
with her citizens. Such will be heartily welcomed, will find employ- 
ment at remunerative wages, and will be able to work all the year in 
the field with safety, the old error, inculcated by the enemies of the 
South, that only black men can do this having been exploded by 
observation and experiment since the war. 

Laborers are offered from $6 to $16 per month, with rations, and 
mechanics from $2 to $3 a day. Cropping on shares is very generally 
practiced. In some instances the renter agrees to give one bale of cot- 
ton for the rent of eight or ten acres of land. In others the laborer 
furnishes his own provisions and the labor, and gets one-half the pro- 
duce, the land and everything else being furnished by the landlord, 
who gets the other half. In others the landlord furnishes everything, 
but the labor and receives three-fourths of the crop. 

There is some immigration, mostly from Mississippi, Alabama and 
Texas. No efforts have been made to secure immigrants. 

The section throughout is well adapted to stock raising. The soil 
everywhere is covered with succulent weeds, bushes, vines and nu- 
tritious grasses, that afford abundant food for cattle, sheep, goats and 
horses. The numerous oak, pine and beech trees and muscadine vines 
produce abundant mast for hogs. Horses are rarely fed, except when 
in use, and other kinds of stock are reared for market without feeding. 
Nearly every farmer is engaged, to some extent, in stock raising, and 
there are many herds of cattle. Stock cattle are valued at $10 per 
head, sheep at from $1.50 to $2 per head, and hogs from fifty cents to 
$1. The profit of stock raising is simply enormous; in some instances 
more than 50 per cent has been realized. 

Little has been accomplished in the direction of manufacturing; but 
in the hill region there are many creeks having water-power sufficient 
to propel saw and grist mills and cotton gins, and two or three having 
sufficient power to run cotton and wool factories. There are saw and 
grist mills and gins run by water, and several propelled by steam — all 
of which are doing a good business. 

New Orleans is the best market. Produce is shipped by steamers on 
the Ouachita, Tensas, Little, Black and Red rivers, and reaches New 
Orleans in one or two days. 

Apples, pears, plums, strawberries and grapes, are the fruits most 
suitable, for cultivation. Blackberries, dewberries, mulberries, musca- 
dines and other fruits are found everywhere growing wild and in great 
abundance. Fruit growing as a business has not been engaged in 
extensively. 

Peas, beans, cabbages, radishes, squashes, okra, lettuce, onions, 
beets and all other vegetables suitable to the South, can be grown in> 
abundance and profitably. 



106 LOUISIANA. 



Silk culture lias never been engaged in, but from the facts that the 
climate is suitable, that the mulberry and other growths upon which 
the silkworm feeds, flourish here, and that this is the habitat of cater- 
pillars similar in natui'e to the silkworm, it is believed that, as an 
industry, silk culture could be made profitable. 

This is emphatically a honey making country. Thousands of swarms 
•of wild bees are found yearly in the forests, and at nearly every farm 
house may be seen hives in which these busy little creatures are de- 
positing their valued treasures. 

The whole country, being covered with nutritious growths, milk, 
butter and cheese can be produced at little cost. All kinds of poultry 
are easily raised. 

Oak bark of the best kinds, and other tanning materials being 
plentiful, and hides abundant and cheap, tanning could be engaged in 
profitably. Saw mills, lumbering, cotton, wool and wagon factories 
could be made profitably. 

The many rivers, creeks, bayous and beautiful lakes are in the fall, 
winter and earlv spring the resort of thousands of geese, brants and 
ducks, and at all times are teeming with edible fish, such as the trout, 
bass, perch, bream, cat, drum and buffalo. These are easily caught 
with lead and line, and contribute both to the pleasure and profit of 
the people. In the forests are thousands of deer, squirrels, rabbits 
and other game. 

An industrious man can cultivate about 15 acres in cotton, corn, 
peas and vegetables, on which he can produce from eight to ten bales 
of cotton, from 150 to 300 bushels of corn, and potatoes and vege- 
tables for family consumption; and when we add to this the profits of 
his cattle, hogs and horses that subsist on the range, in most places, 
the whole year, it is plainly to be seen that the profits of farm labor 
are simply extraordinary, when compared with that of the states of 
Europe or the older States of the Union. The truth is, there is prob- 
ably no country where a living can be made with less exertion, and the 
exemption which this affords from the great law of labor, has really 
injured our people by paralyzing their energy. 

Previous to the late war, the rich swamp lands lying principally 
along the Ouachita, Black, Tensas and Little rivers, and on Sicily 
Island, had been purchased by wealthy slave owners, were held by 
them in large bodies, and could not be bought for less than from $25 to 
$75 per acre. Large bodies of these lands had been brought into 
cultivation, costby improvements had been erected upon them, and 
they were the seats of prosperity, Avealth and luxury, and in many 
instances of intelligence and refinement. The hill region was also 
gradually settling with prosperous and independent small farmers. 
The long and bloody war, during which this was the theater of pre- 
datory strife, and the unhappy and unwise administration of the 
reconstruction laws, devastated the country, drove many of its best 
citizens away, impoverished those that remained and repelled immi- 
gration. 



THE FLORIDA PARISHES. 



EAST AND WEST FELICIANA, EAST BATON ROUGE, LIVING- 
STON, ST. TAMMANY, ST. HELENA, TANGIPAHOA 
AND WASHINGTON. 

These constitute the Eastern portion of Louisiana and are bounded 
on the north by the State of Mississippi on the 31st parallel, south by 
lakes Pontckartrain, Maurepas and bayou Manchac, east by the State 
of Mississippi on Pearl river, and west by the great Mississippi river. 

East Baton Rouge fronts the river one hundred and thirty miles 
above New Orleans. 

The city of Baton Rouge is the parish site and the capital of the 
State. It is built on the extreme southern point of bluff laud that 
touches the Mississippi river and which extends south from the Alle- 
ghany mountains. 

The city of Baton Rouge was incorporated in 1820, and has a popu- 
lation of 8000 inhabitants. The parish was organized in 1811, and has 
now about 21,000 inhabitants. 

The lands along the Mississippi river are alluvial, of which about 
one-third are in cultivation, the remainder being pasturage and wood- 
land. The timber found here is principally cypress, gum, oak and 
many small varieties of trees. The other portion of the parish is 
called highlands, that is, laud not subject to inundation by the Missis- 
sippi river. The forest growth is of great variety, comprising all 
kinds of oak, gum, magnolia, poplar and beech, interspersed with 
much undergrowth. The soil is as various as the forest growth, rang- 
ing from poor to very fertile; but under the energetic manipulation of 
the progressive farmer, will yield a rich reward to the husbandman. 

Upon these lands all the staple crops are cultivated successfully, viz: 
cotton, cane, corn, potatoes, etc. The yield of cotton is one-half bale 
per acre to one and a half bales. The yield of cane is one hogshead of 
sugar to three hogsheads per acre. The average per acre of corn is 
twenty bushels to forty. So with all productions of the soil, the max- 
imum amount is made according to the quantity of fertilizer and the 
quality of the brain used. The city of Baton Rouge affords a very 
limited market for the products of the parish, the principal market 
being New Orleans and the Western cities. 

There are many small streams passing through and bordering on the 
parish, which afford sufficient drainage to all its lauds. They are the 
Amite, Coinite, Manchac, Bayou Fountain, Ward's creek, Montesano, 
White's bayou, Cypress bayou, Redwood, Blackwater, Sandy creek 
and many other minor water courses. In these streams are to be found 
many kinds of fish and water- fowl. 

The health of the parish has always been regarded good. The mil- 
itary post located at Baton Rouge shows the best health record of any 
post in the Southwest. The thermometer rarely rises above 90° or 
falls below 20° F., and when either extreme is reached it lasts but a 



108 LOUISIANA. 



few days. The leading nationalities of the world are represented in 
our population. The English, French and German languages being 
spoken principally — the English being the language iu which business 
is transacted. The general character Of the peopie is quiet and indus- 
trious, and they would give a hearty welcome to all immigrants who- 
are likeAvise disposed. 

There is land for sale and rent. In all cases they are reasonable. 

The principal religious denominations of this parish are the Cath- 
olic, Methodist, Presbyterian, Episcopalian, Baptist and Israelite. All 
have places of worship in the town and some in the various neighbor- 
hoods in the parish. Educational facilities are very good. The State 
University and Mechanical and Industrial college are located at Baton 
Rouge under the direction of an able corps of professors, where all the 
branches of a polite and practical education can be acquired at a small 
cost, besides other male and female seminaries quite adequate to the 
wants of the community. Public schools are in a progressive condition 
and are supplemented in every neighborhood by private schools. In 
addition to this there are two other State institutions that deserve 
notice, viz : the Institute for the Blind and the Institution for the 
Deaf and Dumb. 

The facilities for reaching market with manufactured and agricul- 
tural products are unsurpassed. The parish lies for nearly forty miles 
upon the Mississippi river, affording daily communication with New 
Orleans and the western cities. The New Orleans and Pacific Railroad 
affords communication with the Pacific States, and the Mississippi 
Valley runs direct to Memphis and New Orleans. The southern por- 
tion of the parish carries on an extensive trade with New Orleans by 
steamer across the lakes, up the Amite river to Hope Villa. The 
" small planters" produce from ten to fifty hogsheads of sugar and 
have been so successful as to have attracted market attention. John 
Picou, one of the pioneers in this section in this industry, has never 
produced less than two hogsheads of sugar and frequently three hogs- 
heads per acre. 

Wages for an expert field hand on sugar plantations is $18 per 
month and rations. Where the share system is adopted, as on cotton 
plantations, the laborer gets of what he produces one-third and 
rations, or one-half and feeds himself. Good mechanics get $3 per 
day, and are in demand. 

A source of considerable profit to the planting and farming commu- 
nity is stock raising. Though not pursued as a separate business is 
followed to some extent by every planter. It is a business in which 
nearly all is profit. Nearly every one has his herd of cattle and hogs. 
These cost nothing for the raising, except herding, marking and brand- 
ing, and this can be done without encroaching upon the time to be 
devoted to agricultural pursuits. There is a good market for all the 
butter the good housewife ean make, so that as a collateral pursuit 
stock raising is a profitable adjunct to farming operations. 

There is probably no place in Louisiana offering greater advantages 
for the establishment of manufactories of various kinds, than the city 
of Baton Rouge. Situated in a healthy locality, on land never subject 
to overflow, with a fertile country around it, upon the Mississippi 
river and connected with the vast country lying west of that river by 
the Southern Pacific Railroad, it would seem to be marked out by 
nature for an eminent future, the realization of which is near at hand. 
Here stands the immense building of the Louisiana Penitentiary^: 



THE PARISHES OF LOUISIANA 109 



within those walls are contained the best of machinery for the manu- 
facture of woolen and cotton goods, with 200 looms and the necessary 
appliances for a complete factory. This factory can be leased on very 
favorable terms. An opportunity is here afforded to capitalists of very 
rare occurrence. The country around would furnish all the cotton 
necessary at one-half cent less than New Orleans prices, and with a\ 
population of 8000 inhabitants, the city of Baton Kouge would furnish 
all the operatives necessary for a factory of 400 looms. 

There is established here a cotton seed oil mill and so lucrative has 
been the business that the proprietors are erecting additional appa- 
ratus for refining the oil. 

In iron Avork there is a factory engaged in the manufacture of sugar 
machinery, steam trains, evaporators, etc. 

There is room enough for several of these factories. For the support 
of the operatives engaged in these factories, the country will afford an 
abundance of vegetables and fruits at reasonable prices. 

LIVINGSTON PARISH. 

The formation of the bluff lands in this parish is similar to that of 
East Baton Rouge. 

Most of the cultivated land lies along the Amite, Tickfaw and Bayou 
Barbary, Gray's creek and the Colyell. Its forests, which cover the 
largest division of its area, still abound in timber of great marketable 
value. In the eastern division, on the water-shed draining into the 
Tickfaw, the forests, although growing magnolia, beech, oak, gum and 
hickory in huge quantities, are still interspersed with a considerable 
growth of pine. In the western division, or on the water-shed drain- 
ing into the Amite river and lake Maurepas, pine is rare, and magnolia, 
oak, beach, gum, hickory and cypress form the staple of forest growth. 
Along the margin of the lake there are some very productive farms 
under cultivation ; so, also, on Bayou Barbary and its three prongs, on 
all of which soil of great natural fertility may be had in abundance 
at government prices, or at rates almost as cheap from the proprietors. 

Throughout the southwestern division, the productive wealth of the 
parish is derived chiefly from the forests and swamps, and this is the 
cast' as high up as Port Vincent. The parish on the east extends into 
the long leaf pine flats, i 

The Hon. II. Skipwith writes to the N. 0. Times-Democrat: 

"A tew miles below Port Vincent, seated along the margin of the 
river Amite is a hamlet universally styled "the French settlement." 
A cote joyeuse, on which many descendants of emigres from La Belle 
Fiance enact their happy role, composed of almost equal parts of work 
and fan, for so wags the world in the French settlement. Each hahit- 
ant has his cane, corn, oats, rice and potato patch, occasionally, too, a 
patch of cotton, and each in almost equal proportions, (furthermore no 
"grande homme <le province" in the French settlement,) has his flock of 
goats and sheep, his hogs and his herd of cattle. Those enumerated 
are all behind him ; in front he has as much good cypress timber as he 
can cut and float in the next half century. Altogether, with the com- 
bined product of his pastures, of his flocks and herds, and of his raids 
upon the cypress forests in front of him, I should say that the habitues 
of the French settlement can well afford to spend, as they do, every 
Saturday night in fiddling and dancing, and to enliven the interval be- 
tween dances with a bottle or two of claret. It is an isolated colony, 
aud there is no better community in the world. Some of their peculiar 



110 LOUISIANA. 



characteristics grow, perhaps, out of their isolation, viz : indifference 
about the great events which are stirring other parts of the world, dis- 
like of anything which smacks of change, particularly in the matter of 
a reformation of religions. Such a community, while reliable to make 
a resolute defense of its home interests, would probably contribute a 
scant quota to an army in the field. But with all its peculiarities, it i& 
a happy, virtuous, law-abiding community. If it contributes not 
much to the revenues of the commonwealth, ±^ costs the common- 
wealth nothing to enforce the public justice agaiiu- its offenders, for 
it has none. 

From lake Maurepas up the Amite, as high as Port Vincent, there 
are lauds in large bodies which in natural strength of soil are sur- 
passed only by the alluvial lauds of the Mississippi valley — lands which 
in choice spots will produce two hogsheads of sugar, 2500 pounds of 
seed cotton, 35 barrels of corn and 50 bushels of rice to the acre. The 
same estimate of the capacity of the soil will apply to fresh, well- 
drained lands north of Port Vincent, up to the northern boundary of 
the parish ; such lands are still to be found iu large bodies along the 
Amite and in the valleys of Gray's creek and Lhe Colyell. Much of the 
land, however, which is now cultivated, has be \ in cultivation for 
many years, and its capacity has been much redi ced by years of neg- 
lect and maltreatment. 

Near Springfield there is a small vineyard under the management of 
a thrifty German, skilled as a vine grower. Small as it is, its yield is 
amazing, producing grapes in large quantities for market, which are 
shipped by the N. 0., J. and C. railroad, only six miles distant, and 
enough wine and vinegar to supply the family and the neighborhood. 
Aloug the valley of the Tickfaw the natural soil was very productive, 
but long usage and neglect has exhausted much of its original pro- 
ductive force. There are still, however, some large bodies of fresh 
virgin soil. 

EAST AND WEST FELICIANA PARISHES. 

These parishes are bounded on lhe north by the State of Mississippi 
on the 31° parallel of latitude. West Feliciana lies along the east 
bank of the Mississippi river and contiguous to East Feliciana on the 
east. A narrow strip of land along the Mississippi river is alluvial, 
but the remainder of the parishes is composed of blvff and good 
uplands, with the exception of a strip of East Feliciana which extends 
into the long leaf pine region on the east. 

There is. perhaps, ho section of the United States that offers greater 
inducements to the settler than these parishes. Many of the negroes 
have left the high healthy (able lands for the alluvial bottoms, and 
there are many thousands of acres of old turned out fields, that have 
grown up in wild grasses. These afford pasturage to cattle, sheep and 
hogs, which increase and multiply with very little < are. 

Lands may be bought in small or large tracts from $1 to $5 per 
acre. A citizen of this section writes: 

No part of Louisiana is favored with a more complete system of 
natural drainage, and away up among the Tunica hills there are land- 
scapes as bold and imposing in their wild grandeur as the average of 
Switzerland scenery. These Tunica hills, besides their romantic 
beauty, possess a quality of soil as attractive to the eye of a practical 
farmer (they being knobs founded upon an iuexhaustable limestone 
base) as the beautiful landscapes are to the eye of the transient 



THE PARISHES OF LOUISIANA. Ill 



sketcher; but even here the natural capacity of the soil, which is fully 
equal to one and a half hogsheads of sugar, to one and a half bales of 
cotton and to forty barrels of corn to the acre, is partially obscured 
by negligent or by inadequate cultivation. 

Notwithstanding the admitted adaptability of the Tunica hills to 
the cultivation of the old style standards of cane, cotton and corn, the 
immigrant when he comes may — and I think he will — endeavor to 
apply the virtues of the limestone to orchards and vineyards, if thereby 
a more profitable industry can be evoked. 

The health of this section is as good as that of any part of the 
United States. The people are intelligent, educated, refined and hos- 
pitable. Public and private schools and churches of all denominations 
are located in every neighborhood. Transportation facilities are 
afforded by the Mississippi river, and by the St. Francisville, Clinton 
and Port Hudson and Mississippi Valley Railroads. The county sites 
are St. Francisville and Clinton, both beautiful country towns, noted 
for the refinement and cultivation of the people. 

Fred. Buto, an immigrant from Dantzig, West Prussia, is at the 
head of a prosperous German settlement near Clinton, East Feliciana 
parish. 

ST. HELENA, TANGIPAHOA, WASHINGTON AND ST. TAMMANY 

PARISHES. 

These four parishes lie to the east of East Feliciana and Livingston, 
and are bounded on the north and east by the State of Mississippi. 
Pearl river marks their extreme eastern boundary. 

These parishes are located in the great long leaf pine region, and 
their topography and general characteristics are similar. 

The population of this section are farmers rather than planters. 
They are an independent, hard handed people who do their own work 
and make their own crops, generally without the aid of a commisfiion 
merchant. They grow everything necessary for home comfort except 
tea and coffee. 

Their farms ai - e generally along the creek and river bottoms, and 
their flocks and herds run at large in the pine woods. This is essen- 
tially a white man's country. 

There is good and sufficient railroad, river and lake transportation. 
The Chicago, St. Louis and New Orleans Railroad intersects Tangi- 
pahoa from north to south and the New Orleaus and Northeastern 
Railroad passes through the eastern borders of St. Tammany. 

Good water is fouud in abundance everywhere — all clear, cool and 
pleasant to the taste. In the vicinity of Covington, St. Tammany 
parish, are many fine mineral wells and springs. The Abita springs, 
three miles from Covington, are the resort of a large and constantly 
increasing number of invalids, and many of the wells in Covington 
have acquired quite a reputation by their numerous cures. 

The thermometer rarely reaches 88° in the summer, or falls below 
40° in winter. The nights are cool, and the air seems to possess re- 
markable curative powers in all diseases of the lungs and throat. A 
well-authenticated case of sunstroke has never been known in the 
pine woods. 

The entire section is heavily timbered. Pearl river and Bogue Chitto 
forming the eastern boundary, have bottom lands along their banks 
varying from one to three miles in depth. The other numerous streams 



.112 LOUISIANA. 



have but a narrow skirt, only a few hundred yards in width. Tangi- 
pahoa, Bonfouca, Bayou Liberty, Bayou Lacombe, Tchefuncta, Abita, 
Pontehatoloway and Bogue Falia are all navigable streams, some of 
them being navigated for twenty miles above their mouths. The en- 
tire region is filled with streams of clear, cold water, and there is 
scarcely a spot where fine well water cannot be found at a short dis- 
tance from the surface. 

With the exception of the creek and river bottoms, and the swamp 
above Lake Pontchar train, the surface is covered with a heavy and 
valuable growth of pine. Numerous creeks afford a cheap and easy 
mode of carrying the logs, wood, charcoal, tar, and other products of 
this forest, to the New Oilcans market. In the bottoms of the creeks 
and rivers, magnolia, beech, gum, oak, hickory, ash, cypress, dogwood 
and holly abound. Along the lake coast are valuable tracts of live-oak. 
In the bottoms of Pearl river and Bogue Chitto vast quantities of 
white-oak timber are found. 

The bottom land is productive and similar to that lying along all 
the small creeks and Bayous of the State. The pine lands generally 
have a surface soil of sandy loam, varying from six to twelve inches in 
depth, under which is found a stiff clay, impervious to water. The 
clay is of a fine quality for making brick. A very flue article of pot- 
tery has also been made from it. 

Sand suitable for the manufacture of glass is found in large quan- 
tities. 

Nearly all the religious denominations are well represented, the 
Catholics, Methodists and Baptist. Every ward lias either a public or 
private school — sometimes both. 

Around the towns colored labor is generally employed. Most of the 
farming is done by the white men, who generally own the land. In- 
dustrious white or colored men can always find employment at about 
$15 per month with board. If they prefer to work the crop on shares 
they get one-quarter, farmer furnishing everything. 

The supply of mechanics is equal to the demand. But there is a 
great demand for reliable labor, either white or colored. White men 
both native born and foreign, can, and do, work all the year in the 
held with safety. 

Both land and living are so cheap that there is no place where the 
immigrant can make a start on less money. Immigrants from the 
North or any portion of Europe would be eagerly welcomed. Suitable 
land can be obtained from the Government under the homestead law, 
and the timber for fences and buildings will be found on the land. 

Neither cattle nor sheep are fed during the entire year. Both are 
profitable, but sheep pay far better than cattle. At present, the busi- 
ness of stock raising is very badly conducted. Many stock owners do 
not sue their stock for months at a time. No herders are ever in charge 
of the sheep, and they are turned adrift at the mercy of hogs, dogs 
and buzzards. Consequently the losses are heavy, and yet with all 
these drawbacks the business is very profitable. There are no burs to 
injure the wool, and they do not seem to suffer from any diseases. 
The herds of cattle vary from forty to five hundred head in number 
and sheep from one hundred to one thousand. 

Cattle yield 25 per cent profit; sheep from 45 to 50 per cent accord- 
ing to the amount of attention paid to them. 

The streams afford plenty of water power for manufacturing, but 
there are no manufactories. The water is remarkably clear and pure, 
and many tine locations could be found for paper manufactories. 



THE FARISEFS OF LOUISIANA. 113 



New Orleans is the nearest and best market. It is reached in a few 
hours by rail, steamboat or schooner. 

Figs, pomegranates, peaches, apples, pears, plums, cherries, grapes, 
pecans and walnuts grow everywhere. ^Strawberries are profitable. 
Along the lake coast the orange thrives very well, and a good many 
orchards have been recently planted. Several varieties of the grape 
have proved very profitable and some German and French citizens 
have commenced making wine on a small scale. 

All kinds of vegetables grow well. The health of the pine woods 
is yearly attracting large numbers of people to the towns. This 
affords a ready market for all the vegetables and fruits that can be 
raised by those engaged in this business. The supply is not near 
equal to the demand. 

The nearness of the New Orleans market and the cheapness of 
transportation, render this section a hire location for almost any 
industry. 

When disease prevailed to an alarming extent among the silk worms 
of Italv, the Government of that country sought to renew the stock of 
worms by importing eggs from other countries. For this purpose a 
premium was offered for the finest eggs. Mr. John Rocchi carried off 
this premium, with eggs raised at his place in Covington. All varieties 
of the mulberry flourish with great vigor and there is no doubt but 
silk could be produced with profit. 

Bees succeed well and produce fine honey. 

The fine grass range makes the production of milk and butter very 
profitable. Poultry require but little feed or care- 
All the bayous and rivers are well ^stocked with every variety of 
perch, black bass, catfish, buffalo, rockfish and suckers. In Lake 
Pontchartrain, sheephead, red fish, croakers, flounders and other 
varieties of salt water fish are found. 

Game is abundant. Deer, turkeys, squirrels and quail, ducks, wood- 
cocks and snipe. 

An industrious man can cultivate from fifteen to twenty acres in 
mixed crops, say four in cane, four in cotton* ten in corn, two and a 
half in sweet potatoes. Besides these crops he can cultivate several 
acres in red oats, they being planted in the fall and reaped in June. 
In addition to this work, he can attend to a small stock of sheep and 
cattle. A committee of citizens send the following endorsement of 
these parishes : 

"Population mostly white; nationalities, American and mixtures 
from the different countries of Europe. We have English, Scotch, 
German, Swedes, French and Irish. The general character of our in- 
habitants will compare favorably with the best in the United States. 

To the north are rolling piney-woods, interspersed with numerous 
rivers, creeks and branches. The principal growth is pine, mostly long 
leaf yellow, oaks of several varieties, gum, poplar, magnolia, beech, 
bass-wood, maple, sumac, hickory, dogwood, etc., on the watercourses, 
birch, elm, cherry, etc.; a small quantity of cypress in the small river 
swamps. 

The lands on the river banks from a quarter to a mile wide, are 
nearly all cultivable. Our rivers and creeks are subject to overflow 
from heavy rains in the spring and late in the fall for a few days only. 
The uplands are in general sandy, with good clay sub-soil. The 
branch, creek and river flats are the cream of the uplands, washed off 
by the rains, they are a dark, sandy loam, with good clay sub-soil. 
8 



114 LOUISIANA. 



There are many fine mill sites, affording sufficient water power for 
factories and machinery, A number of saw mills and cotton gins are 
now run by them. The quality of our soil is generally productive. 

No minerals developed as yet. Small quantities of iron ore can be 
seen in many places. 

We can grow almost any kind of crops, including many from the 
tropics. Cotton is cultivated by the majority of farmers as the money 
crop. On land not fertilized, the average yield is from one-half to 
three-quarter bales of cotton per acre. Lands well fertilized and 
cultivated will yield, with favorable season, one bale weighing from 
400 to 500 pounds. 

The average crop'of corn on lands not fertilized is from ten to fifteen 
bushels. By fertilization, some farmeis have made from forty to fifty 
bushels per acre, worth at home from fifty cents to one dollar per 
bushel. 

Sweet potatoes, cultivated for home use, are a profitable crop, yield 
from 100 to 300 bushels per acre, worth from twenty-five to fifty cents 
per bushel at home. Irish potatoes yield about the same. We can 
raise two crops a year. 

Oats yield about the same as corn. Sugar cane is generally culti- 
vated in small patches. Little portable mills and copper evaporating- 
pans are resorted to in the manufacture of syrup. 

Parties having mill and fixtures go from place to place in the fall, 
and grind on shares, usually one sixth for use of mill and man to tend 
it. When the miller furnishes team and help the toll ranges from 
one-fourth to one-third. 

We can make, with very little work, one hogshead of sugar and four 
barrels of molasses per acre. 

Sorghum cane produces well, and makes an excellent feed for raising 
hogs. It will make from 60 to 100 gallons per acre, worth 40 and 50 
cents per gallon. It is not cultivated much. 

Rice is cultivated with but little work on new-ground lands. 
Broom corn will do splendidly here. 
Hops do well. 

Tobacco will do as well here as anywhere. Three cuttings a year 
can be obtained. 

Crab grass and pea hay is generally cut and saved for stock here. 
Pea vines plowed in just as the pea turns to ripen is the best and 
cheapest fertilizer we can use, and by actual test, it will redeem barren 
lands in three years to their primitive state of fertility. 

Almost every farmer has some fruit trees, generally peaches. The 
climate and soil is well adapted to the culture of a large variety of 
fruits, — quinces, pomegranates, peaches, pears, some few varieties of 
apple, plums of every variety do well, figs never fail, some few varie- 
ties of grapes do exceedingly well, strawberries do well; watermelons, 
exceedingly fine, often weighing from 40 to 50 pounds ; pumpkins and 
kershaws are excellent. 

Jute will do well by actual test. 

Our climate is delightful — the doctors often say distressingly healthy. 
Atmosphere pure and salubrious at all times. We have no epidem- 
ics in our parish. Our mortality list will compare favorably with any : 
other section of the United States. We are much less liable to sun- 
stroke than in the State of New York ; in fact, sunstroke is hardly 
known here. 

Our drinking water is as good as anywhere in the world ; it is ob- 
tained from numerous bold crystal springs, wells and cisterns. 



TEE PAB1SEES OF LOUISIANA. 115 



Lands of all kinds can be bought, woodland and improved lands — 
prices varying from $1 to $10 per acre, according to locality and im- 
provements. Terms can be made in most cases to suit purchaser. 
Thousands of acres of unsurpassed saw-mill timber can be had at the 
government price, per acre $1 25, or even less. 

The usual contract for labor is, for the farmer to furnish the land, 
teams, feed and implements necessary to cultivate and gather the 
crop, and give one-half of all the crops raised. 

When rations are furnished, the laborer gets one-third of the crop. 
When wages are given, the range is from $10 to $15 per month, with 
usual rations. When parties rent, they pay according to value of land, 
condition of fences and improvements, etc.; easy terms can be made. 

This is a great hog country. They generally grow fat in the woods. 

From the observation of some of our oldest settlers every third 
year the beech trees are ladened with fruit. Oak and pine masts are 
generally plentiful. 

The natural facility and ease of production, of forage of every kind, 
with mildness of climate and unlimited wild pasture, makes this natu- 
rally a fine stock country. Horses, mules, cattle, sheep, goats and 
hogs can be raised here with as much profit as anywhere. 

The average price of our native sheep is Si 50 per head ; beef cattle, 
yearlings at home, from $5 to $6 per head; milch cows from $15 to 
$20 per head. 

The cost of raising is comparatively nothing, as in this climate stock 
can get along without wintering. In the months of February and 
March they need some little attention. Hence, stock raising with us is 
nearly all profit. The manure alone will pay for the attention given 
to stock. Milk, butter, hides and wool are a great source of profit. 

Lumber sells at the mills from $8 to $10 per 1000 feet. 

We have good home markets in our numerous country and village 
stores for everything we raise. 

The woods proverbially are a natural flower garden the year round, 
and every variety of tame, native or imported plants that can be cul- 
tivated in the United States, will do well here — but few needing any 
winter protection. 

We have turkeys, rabbits, squirrels, deer, opossums, coons, ducks, 
woodcock, snipe, quails, etc. 

We have a fair supply in our streams, including perch, trout, catfish, 
buffalo, caspagou, soft-shell turtles and hard-shells of several varieties. 

We have a variety of native song-birds — the American canary, 
lark and mocking-bird, the imitator of all birds, filling the air with its 
delightful warble day and night; the oreole, wren, humming-bird, 
blue-jay, thrush, blue, red and blackbirds, and many others of varie- 
gated colors. 

We invite honest, well meaning, white immigrants from all quarters 
of the globe. They can find employment here at remunerative wages, 
and can work all the year round in the fields with perfect safety. 

Capitalist and manufacturers are needed to develop the incalculable 
resources of our country. Good mechanics get fair wages. 

We have had but little immigration as yet, we have a few from 
other States in the Union, a, few from Sweden, Germany, England, 
France and Ireland. 

ORLEANS PARISH. 

Orleans parish is on the east bank of the Mississippi river and ex- 
tends north and east to Lakes Poutchartrain and Borgne, by which it 



116 LOUISIANA. 



is almost surrounded. The parish is mostly sea marsh, except that 
portion upon which the city of New Orleans is situated. 

With the exception of a strip of alluvial land extending along the 
Bayou Gentilly toward Chef Menteur, the sea marsh is not suitable for 
settlement and cultivation without artificial drainage and levees. 

THE CITY OF NEW ORLEANS 

was founded in 1717 by Jean Baptiste Lemoyne de Bienville, a 
French Canadian, and named in honor of Louis Philippe, Due 
d'Orleans. It is situated on the Mississippi river, 107 miles from 
the jetties, at its mouth. The greater portion of the city lies on the 
east or left bank of the river, only one district — the fifth or Algiers — 
being situated west of the Mississippi. The bend in the river around 
which the city is built, gave it originally the shape of a crescent, 
and started the title " Crescent City." New Orleans, however, has 
continued building up the river and is now not in the least like a 
crescent, but rather like the letter " S." 

POPULATION OF NEW ORLEANS. 

1772 220 

1745. . ..•••• 1,100 

1769 3,100 

1785 4,980 

1787 .' ' 5,284 

1/90 .-: 5,520 

1796 8,756 

1800 8,540 

1803 10,500 

1808 17,081 

1810 17,242 

1815 ! 22,209 

1820 •• 27,176 

1825 38,501 

1830 46,310 

1835 62,971 

1840 102,193 

1850 116,375 

1855 158.980 

1860 : 168,775 

1865 174,815 

1870 191,418 

1875 203,888 

1880 216,140 

1884 280,000 

PLACES OF INTEREST TO VISIT. 

The Exposition Buildings. The City Park. The French Market, 
Decatur street. Customhouse, Canal street. United States Mint, Es- 
planade street. City Hall, corner St. Charles and Lafayette streets. 
Jackson Square, Chartres, Decatur, St. Ann and St. Peter streets. Cot- 
ton Exchange, Carondelet street. West End or New Lake End, N. O. 
City R. R. Spanish Fort, N. O. Spanish Fort and Lake R. R. Milne- 
burg or Old Lake End, Pontchartrain R. R. United States Barracks. 



TEE FARISEES OF LOUISIANA. 117 

Tlie Federal Cemetery, Chalniette. Lee Monument, St. Charles street. 
Margaret Monument, Camp street. Tulane University, corner Dryades 
and Common streets. 

STEAM LINES. 

NewOrleans and Carrollton. Cars leave Canal street, drawn by 
horses to Napoleon avenue; connect at corner of Napoleon aveuue 
and St. Charles avenue with dummies; running thence via St. Charles 
avenue to Carrollton. 

New Orleans, Lake and Cemeteries (West End) line, starts from 
corner Canal and Dauphine street; thence out Canal to Cemeteries, 
stopping at Rampart, Claiborne, Galvez and Broad streets, thence 
along New Canal to West End terminus, on Lake Pontchartrain. 

New Orleans and Spanish Fort line. Depot, corner of Canal and 
Basin streets ; down Basin to Bienville, out Bienville to St. Patrick, 
out St. Patrick to Orleaus Canal, along Orleans Canal to Lake Pont- 
chartrain, along lake front to Spanish Fort on Bayou St. Johu. Returns 
by same route. 

Pontchartrain Railroad (belonging to the Louisville and Nashville 
Railroad.) Depots head of Canal street and head of Elysian Fields 
street; along levee to Elysian Fields, out Elysian Fields to Milneburg, 
terminus on Lake Pontchartrain. 

Mississippi, Terre aux Bceuf and Lake Borgne Railroad. Depot, 
corner of Elysian Fields and St. Claude streets. The line runs to Shell 
Beach, formerly Proctorsville, on Lake Borgne. 

Algiers and Gretna, on west bank of river, starts from Canal street 
or First District Ferry Landing on Villere street, thence along river 
front to Gretna or Jackson street ferry. 

RAILROAD LINES. 

Chesapeake and Ohio. Ticket office, corner of Common and St. 
Charles. 

Chicago, St. Louis and New Orleans Railroad. Ticket office, corner 
of Canal and Caroudelet, Pickwick Club; passenger depot, " Jackson 
depot," corner of Calliope and Magnolia. Street cars running there: 
Clio, Erato, Royal and Bourbon line. 

Kennesaw Route, ticket office, No. 9. St. Charles street. 

Louisville and Nashville Railroad. Ticket office, corner of St. Charles 
and Common, under the St. Charles Hotel. Passenger depot, foot of 
Canal street. Freight depot, foot of Girod street. 

Mobile and Ohio Railroad. Ticket office, corner of St. Charles and 
Common. 

Morgan's Louisiana and Texas Railroad. Ticket office, corner of 
Magazine and Natchez. Passenger depot in Algiers. Ferry landing, 
foot of Elysian Fields street, whence passengers are ferried to depot. 
Street ears running there: Clio, Erato, Royal and Bourbon, and Levee 
and Barracks lines. Freight depot, foot of Poydras street. 

New Orleans Pacific (Texas and Pacific) Railroad. Ticket office, 
corner of Gravier and St. Charles, under St. Charles Hotel. Passenger 
depot, at the foot of Terpsichore street, whence passengers are ferried 
to west bank of the river. Freight depot, foot of Terpsichore street. 
Depot readied by the Tchoupitoulas and New Levee street cars. 

New Orleans and Mississippi Valley Railroad, (Louisville, New 
Orleaus and Texas). Ticket office, No. 61 St. Charles street. Depot, cor- 
ner Poydras and Magnolia ; reached by Poydras and Girod street cars. 



118 



LOUISIANA. 



New Orleans and Northeastern (Cincinnati, New Orleans and Texas 
Pacific or " Queen and Crescent" route). St, Charles street, opposite 
St. Charles Hotel. Depot, corner of Decatur and Press streets ; 
reached by the Barracks and Levee street line. 

NAVIGATION OF THE MISSISSIPPI. 

The total navigation of the Mississippi itself is 2161 miles, but small 
steamers can ascend 760 miles further. 

The following are its principal navigable tributaries, with the miles 
open to navigation : 



Miles. 

Minnesota 295 

Chippewa 90 

Iowa 80 

Missouri 3,174 

Big Horn 50 

Allegheny 325 

Muskingum 94 

Kentucky 105 

Wabash 365 

Tennessee 270 

Osage ' 302 

White 779 

Little White 48 

Big Hatchie 75 

Sunflower 271 

Tallahatchie 175 

Bed 986 

Cypress 44 

Black (ii 

Bartholomew 100 

Macon 60 

Atchafalaya 218 

Lafourche 168 

The other ten navigable tributaries have less than fifty miles each of 
navigation. 

The Mississippi and its tributaries may be estimated to possess 
16,571 miles, navigable to steamboats, and 20,221 miles navigable to 
barges. 



Miles. 

Wisconsin 160 

Rock 64 

Illinois 350 

Yellowstone 474 

Ohio 1,021 

Monongahela 110 

Kanawha 94 

Green 200 

Cumberland 609 

Clinch 50 

St. Francis 180 

Black 147 

Arkansas 884 

Issaquena 161 

Yazoo 228 

Big Black 35 

Cane 54 

Ouachita 384 

Boeuf 55 

Tensas 112 

Teche 91 

D'Arboune 50 



THE PRAIRIE PJLRISHES. 

ST. MARY, ST. MARTIN, IBERIA, LAFAYETTE, VERMILION, 
ST. LANDRY, CALCASIEU AND CAMERON. 

The prairie parishes are located in Southwest Louisiana. This re- 
gion extends from the valley of the Mississippi on the east, to the 
Sabine river on the west, and from the long leaf pine hills on the north 
to the Gulf of Mexico on the South. 

This region comprises about two and a half millions of acres and is 
intersected with innumerable streams of water, of which the Teche, 
Vermilion, Merinentau, Calcasieu, DeGlaize, Long, Boute and Pigeon 
bayous; Dauterive, Grand, Fosse Poiiate, Tasse, Martin and Catahoula 
lakes, and the Atchafalaya, Grand and Alabama rivers are navigable. 
Besides these there are hundreds of bayous, coules, brusles and creeks, 
which water this beautiful country. The banks of every water-course 
are covered with a luxuriant forest growth, from one to six miles in 
width. The traveller is never out of sight of green woods and the 
face of the country appears more like the artificial clearings than nat- 
ural prairie. 

The parishes of St. Mary, St. Martin and Iberia contain alluvial as 
well as prairie soil. The beautiful Teche, celebrated in song by Long- 
fellow, glides silently through these parishes on its clear-winding way 
to the gulf. Here nature has lavishly ymured out her treasures. 

# "Beautiful is the land with its prairies and forests of fruit trees; 

Under the feet a garden of flowers, and the bluest of heavens 
Bending above, and resting its dome on the walls of the forest. 
They who dwell here have named it the Eden of Louisiana," 

The fertility of the land is not surpassed by its beauty so vividly 
portrayed by the poet. 

Its capacity for producing sugar, cotton, rice, and corn and potatoes, 
and live stock and wine, and milk and honey, and all good things for 
man to eat and drink, is not surpassed by any country in the world. 
In addition to natural water transportation, trains on Morgan's Louis- 
iana and Texas railroad and the Louisiana Western railroad run reg- 
ularly. 

The vast prairies are covered with rich pasturage all the year round, 
and thousands of cattle roam over them at will. In the marshes even, 
cattle and horses subsist and graze the year round. All the prairies of 
Western Louisiana are pei'ennially green, and upon them were once 
located the largest vacheries in the United States — vacheries whose 
owners sometimes branded 5000 calves apiece yearly. Sheep by thou- 
sands were also raised, but both these important industries seem to 
have largely fallen off since the war between the States. 

The land is level or gently undulating, not liable to wash from flood- 
ing rains, is easy of cultivation, and susceptible of perfect drainage 
with little cost of labor. The streams afford an abundance of water 
for stock, and the prairie a luxuriant growth of grass for their support. 
To the north extends a heavy forest growth, breaking off from both 
man and beast v the chilling blast of winter, and at the same time af- 
fords a grateful retreat from the heat of summer. 

Hay of an excellent quality can be made from the prairie grass, and 
in quantities to supply a dense population and leave a large surplus 



120 LOUISIANA. 



for exportation. Men used to the labor-saving machines of the North 
and West, and combining therewith a practical knowledge of curing 
and preparing this article of commerce, have presented to them a sure 
and profitable business. 

Swine in great numbers can be raised, and at small expense, the oak 
forests affording a heavy mast. The mildness of climate, the natural 
pasture, facility for procuring salt, and easy access to market, combine 
to render this a most lucrative branch of indnstry. Timber for making 
barrels and for hoops, as also for the construction of all necessary 
buildings, is immediate at hand. 

The extensive cultivation of sugar in this region is confined to the 
alluvial lands, while there is more diversity of crops in the prairie. 

The principal towns in this section are Franklin, New Iberia, St. 
Martinsville, Lafayette, Opelousas, Bayne, Jennings, Lake Charles, 
Abbeville, Leesburg. 

There are churches of every denomination in every village, the 
Eoman Catholic outnumbering the others. 

Educational facilities are provided by public and private schools. 

The most valuable lands in the eastern part of this region have long 
since been taken up and are all improved and cultivated, but further 
west in Vermilion, Cameron, St. Landry and Calcasieu, are thousands 
of acres that may be entered as homesteads from the United States or 
State of Louisiana. A prominent citizen of St. Landry wi'Ltes : 

" The location of the table lands of St. Landry is high above over- 
flow, and, in point of health, will compare favorably with any portion 
of the Western .States. The average temperature of the summer in 
this section is not oppressive, owing to the regular sea breeze which ^ 
refreshes and invigorates. Strangers are struck with the beauty and 
coolness of our nights. There is not experienced that lassitude in 
the morning which is felt at St. Louis and other points in the North 
after enduring the stifled and heated atmosphere of the night. Sleep 
is enjoyed ; and the only trouble we have experienced, is in being 
willing to retire to rest and lose the enjoyment of a Southern night. 
Its soft and balmy air, the clear and limpid firmament above, the 
sweet song of the mocking bird, all conspire to charm us into aforget- 
fulness of " dull and carking cares," and we rise from such a night of 
slumber with health, and spirits and strength renewed for the labors 
of the day. 

" We most urgently l'equest the stranger and pilgrim to turn their 
faces to our land of prairie, carefully look at its position, its resources, 
its beauty and productiveness, and then we ask no more." 

For information in regard to homesteading or buying State lands, 
persons should address the Register State Land Office, Baton Rouge, La. 
For information relative to United States lands, Register, U. S. Land 
Office, Customhouse, New Orleans, La. 

In this region are the famous islands of .the Attakapas. The forest 
growth on these is magnolia, live oak, beech, etc., entirely different 
from the surrounding country. They seem to have been transported 
from a distance and set down in the prairie marsh. Locket says of them: 

" The most interesting of all the bluff lands are the five islands, 
Miller's, (or Orange), Petite Anse, Cote Blanche, Grande Cote and 
Belle Isle. They are really wonderful to behold, looming up on the 
great marsh like mountains in the sea. The highest of them is nearly 
two hundred feet above the surrounding plain, and the largest is not 



TEE PARISHES OF LOUISIANA. . 121 



more than two miles across. Everything about them is striking and 
peculiar. Petite Ansc is the most notable, but they are all worthy of 
a visit. That marvelous salt mine on Petite Anse can be likened to 
nothing so fitly as to the palace built by the magie of Aladdin's lamp. 
The wonder is, how did it get there, and by what mysterious agency 
was created so great a mass of pure rock salt, whose galleries, ex- 
cavated by the miner, glisten and glitter like halls of pure crystal 
studded with diamonds." 

The following letter from some Iowa farmers who have settled on the 
frontier of this prairie region, gives a true statement of what they 
found : 

Jennings, Calcasieu Parish, La., February, 1885. 

In answer to many letters of inquiry, we can say southwestern 
Louisiana, for peculiar reasons, has been an undiscovered, unknown 
country. First, slavery ; then bloody-shirt politics; then opposition 
of stock men, and the running of all passenger trains in the night 
through this beautiful country : all these, and more, have kept the 
country for a few "Cattle Kings." This country, partly prairie, partly 
heavy timber, lies directly on the Sunset Route to San Francisco and. 
the City of Mexico, 184 miles west of New Orleans and 177 east of 
Houston and Galveston, Texas. The most even climate in the States 
(see signal service reports), therefore the very healthiest; three-fourths 
of all diseases come from taking cold. An even climate gives less lia- 
bility to colds. There are no diseases peculiar to this country; malaria 
in a very light form along the rivers, but the prairies are free from it, 
oj^iug to the gulf breezes and excellent water. Water is plentiful, 
geuerally soft ; temperature, 62 degrees; wells, 12 to 20 feet, curbed 
with brick or cypress. These lauds are high above overflow — CO or 
more feet above the gulf at Jennings (gulf 40 miles south). We are 
40 feet above the Iiiver Mermentau, 2^ miles away. The best country 
for roads we ever lived in ; land thickly set with best native grasses, 
is easily broken up, one team sufficient ; easy to cultivate, as tools 
polish or scour readily ; soil, clay loam with clay subsoil. 

Stock raising is now the leading industry, and all stock came through 
the past severe winter with a loss not exceeding one per cent.; 12,000 
sheep, 16,000 horses and 80,000 cattle were wintered on Calcasieu 
prairie alone; they are never fed or cared for, and are better than the 
common stock of the north, and winter better than northwestern stock, 
which is housed and fed six months. We have had fresh beef off this 
prairie every week during the past winter. Fruit raising will be the 
leading industry in three years' time. Peaches bear at two years, and 
have been known to bear almost consecutively for forty years, and 
varieties from May to November. A peach tree eight years old, 3 feet 
in circumference and twenty feet high, will be taken from this parish 
to the World's Exposition, New Orleans. Apricots, quinces, figs, pears, 
nectarines 1 , olives, plums and pomegranates do equally [as well, and 
this is the home of the orange, " King of Fruits " — largest size and 
finest flavor; as the 150 excursionists said, "much sweeter and better 
than California oranges." More than 2,000,000 were raised within a 
range of thirty miles of Jennings last year. One grove, five miles 
east, sold from one and one-half acres, $2,500 worth in 1882-83. There 
is a colony of 250, Iowa people mostly, at Jennings, La., who have 
taken a strip six miles wide by twenty-four long, all of which was 
United States and State lands, (offices at New Orleans and Baton 



122 LOUISIANA, 



Rouge), and there are large quantities of government lands left in the 
vicinity, besides Spanish grants along the streams, on sale at from 
$1.25 to $7.00 per acre. We think there are 2,000,000 acres of United 
States and State lands for sale and subject to homestead and tree cul- 
ture claims, in Calcasieu and St. Landry counties, (or parishes as 
called here). 

The climate is justly called perpetual spring. We will give you in 
brief the advantages over Texas ; We have an even distribution of 
rain over the entire year, and sufficient, 45 inches. We are entirely 
surrounded with heavy timber, except south to the gulf ; have very 
light northers ; delicate fruits, amply protected ; soil easily worked 
and broken ; better and nearer markets ; cheaper and better wood and 
lumber; wood nominal price (little needed) ; lumber $10 to $20 at Jen- 
nings; more certain crops of fruit; plenty of water for stock, and 
easily obtained everywhere in wells and running streams. .Much 
healthier than Texas, and will be divided into small farms, making- 
schools and churches possible. Each scholar is entitled to two dollars 
monthly from public fund. Mosquitoes, flies and reptiles not as nu- 
merous and troublesome as North. The undersigned, Mr. Gary, is first 
of the colony; came March 31, 1883; the rest came scattering over the 
entire season. All have been improved in health, many invalids came; 
kidney and lung diseases have been benefited; almost all diseases 
arising from frequent colds are relieved at once ; catarrh never origin- 
ated here, and cases from the North have been benefited or cured. 
We are well received by the natives, who are much better off than 
same number of farmers North, being quite generally out of debt, and 
have land or stock. Any man who works with judgment gets rich. 
Northern men become more ambitious here, and work with safety and 
comfort the year round. July 4, 1883, thermometer 88 here; in St. 
Paul, 106; in Decorah, 104; Beardstown, 111., 107. Ninety-two is ex- 
treme heat here ; twenty deg. above, extreme cold. Invalids should 
come, and old folks also ; it is a land of easy conditions ; $500 will 
make a family more comfortable than $2,000 in Dakota (Lapland), or 
in the "Banana belt of the golden Northwest." We have most of the 
inconveniences of a new country, except the cold weather. It is an 
estimate of a good stock mau here, that a four year old steer costs $1 
and sells for $20. Horace Greely said : " It costs less to raise a steer 
in Texas than a hen in Massachusetts." We are out of the storm belt; 
have fewer storms, less lightning and no cyclones. The winds leave 
the north pole and here at the same time, and meet in Kansas and 
Iowa, have a fierce battle, and each return and rest up for a new fight. 
The principal crops now are sweet and Irish potatoes and rice. Rice 
is raised at about same expense as wheat in the North, can be sown 
and harvested with same machinery, and the average value of crop 
more than double. Average yield 12$ bbls. per acre ; 162 lbs. per bbl. 
valued at $3 50 per bbl. rough. Expense of raising, $10 per acre. 

Farming is yet in its infancy in Calcasieu, and has been so far purely 
experimental, but fortunate in positively demonstrating that intelligent 
tanning is very profitable. We give the Assessor's report for 1883: 
Number of acres under cultivation, 12,575; in sugar cane, 129 acres, 
yielding 391 bbls. of molasses and 213 of sugar. In cotlon, 1,232 acres, 
yielding 1,124 bales; in rice, 2,934 acres, yielding 33,450 bbls.; in corn, 
6,336 acres, yielding 157, 264 bushels; in oats, 397 acres, yielding 9,650 
bushels ; in sweet potatoes, 1,547 acres, yielding 193,425 bushels. We 



THE PARISHES OF LOUISIANA. 123 



b.ave a variety of native grasses that propagate by seed also by sending 
out roots at every joint; they will stand more wet, more drouth and 
closer feeding, and are better than any grasses I ever saw. These 
grasses are a new thing here, increase by close feeding, so that stock 
winter better than ever and more to the acre. 

We aim to give facts, not opinions. The valuation of improved 
lands in the three repiesentative Northern States, Illinois, Iowa and 
Kansas, is $31 05 per acre, according to the census of 1880; average 
yield per acre, $6 91, only a little over 22 percent. Louisiana, Missis- 
sippi and Arkansas, average value of improved land per acre, $19 57; 
average yield per acre, $13 02, over 66i per cent. Besides, all great 
civilizations have sprung from warm climates, Ethiopian, Carthagenian, 
Grecian, Roman — all civilizations are from countries that grow oranges. 
People have more time to cultivate the mind. In the North " the lean 
kine devours the fat." Neither does any raihvay company own lands 
on these pi*airies. 

Successful farming is reduced to stock raising, even in the North- 
west. Grass is the best form, and warm weather the best time in 
which to feed stock. "Go South, young man, go South." 

Parties wishing further information would do well to send to Win. 
H. Harris, Commissioner of Immigration, New Orleans, for his book 
on Louisiana. Enclose six eents for postage. Then write Capt. J» F. 
Merry, G. W. P. A., Illinois Central R. R., Manchester, Iowa, for ex- 
cursion ticket from nearest point on I. C. R. R. to Jennings, Louisiana. 
Parties from Michigan, Ohio or Indiana, can address A. H. Hanson, G. 
P. A., I, C. R. R., Chicago; S. L. Gary, and others. 

All of the semi-tropical and many of the tropical fruits flourish in 
this portion of the State, especially oranges, bananas, figs, lemons, 
grapes, peaches, quinces, pears and plums. In addition to the fore- 
going fruits might be mentioned dates, pomegranates, olive, cherries, 
papaws, japan plums, citrons, nectarines, shaddocks, blackberries, 
dewberries, strawberries, etc., all of which are either cultivated on a 
small scale or may be successfully grown. 

In the way of garden vegetables almost every variety may be pro- 
duced in the most remarkable profusion. In fact, the soil seems to 
be particularly adapted to the growth of vegetables, and most aston- 
ishing crops of cabbages, onions, turnips, radishes, etc., are produced 
without fertilization, except such as has been bestowed by the hand of 
nature in the shape of decayed vegetable matter. 

Sportsmen find an excellent field of amusement along the various 
water-courses. Redfish, sheephead, trout, perch, catfish, flounder, 
mullet, crabs, shrimps, turtles and oysters of the finest quality abound 
in its waters, as well as ducks, geese and other water-fowl, at certain 
seasons of the year. Good drinking water can be had anywhere by 
sinking well's twenty or thirty feet. This region is not subject to long, 
protracted drouths. Rain in abundance falls throughout the seasons. 
It is usually dry in the autumn, when the farmers are gathering their 
crops. Wind stormn sometimes occur, but never assume the violence 
of a tornado. 

The price of day labor is from $1 to $1.50. The latter wages are 
readily paid during the sugar-making season. The fai'ins are generally 
small, and usually cultivated by the owners and their families. Negro 
laborers are mostly employed on the large plantations. 



124 LOUISIANA. 



The price of land depends much on the locality and value of im- 
provements. Those along the river, best adapted to sugar culture 
command from ten to twenty dollars per acre. There is a vast region 
of good prairie country, however, convenient to navigation, where 
lands can be bought from one to two do rs per acre. Owing to the 
mildness of the climate, very little fuel is required. There is no part 
of the timber so remote from fuel that wood canuot be obtained by 
hauling a few miles. It requires but a few years to raise a forest by 
planting out young trees. The Hon. Frank R. King says : 

" There is no country on the globe, which all the year round fur- 
nishes so many table luxuries — vegetable, animal and fish — as this 
highly favored region. With a small farm, a few head of cattle, a gun 
and fishing rod, one man can easily provide for a large family. It is a 
mystery how eastern and European emigrants can overlook such a fine 
country and in preference settle upon the bleak prairie deserts of 
Western Kansas and Nebraska. Southwestern Louisiana is a paradise 
in comparison. If those seeking new homes in America, would only 
lay aside their prejudice and cease to listen to the partisan abuse and 
misrepresentation of the South by a certain class or political scribblers 
and speakers in the North, they would find here a country of sur- 
passing beauty and fertility, a good government and a kind-hearted 
people to welcome them." 

PLAQUEMINES AND ST. BERNARD PARISHES. 

These parishes lie east and southeast of New Orleans and are in the 
main sea marsh. The Mississippi river runs through the entire length 
of Plaquemines from New Orleans to the jetties. 

Nearly all of the cultivable portion of this parish lies along both 
banks of the Mississippi river, within sixty miles of its northern 
parochial boundaries, or above the Forts Jackson and St. Philip. The 
lands below the points designated, or along the last forty miles of the 
river and passes being low, unprotected by levees, and subject to fre- 
quent tidal overflow from the gulf, are unfit for cultivation without 
artificial drainage and levees. 

The laud is arable along the river above the forts named at an aver- 
age distance or " depth " from either bank of about one-half mile. 

The population of this parish live and its productions are grown 
almost exclusively within this region of sixty square miles. A small 
proportion of its inhabitants live at the pilot villages and marine sta- 
tions on Pass-a 1'Outre, Southwest and South passes, while a few of its 
people dwell upon the " chenieres" and ridges that rise above the sea 
marsh or upon the low sand islands of the coast. 

About four-fifths of the total area of the parish is swamp and sea 
marsh, a portion of which lands may be reclaimed at a remote date, 
but of which the greater part is covered with the "MaraisTremblante" 
or floating prairie. 

There is comparatively little timber country in Plaquemines. That 
which remains is the live oak on the isolated chenieres and cypress in 
deep swamps. Sugar house furnaces and abandoned saw mills have 
long ago consumed almost all the accessible wood and timber. To-day 
there is not a lumber mill in the parish, and its thirty-five sugar manu- 
factories use coal and bagasse almost exclusively for fuel. The remain- 
ing wooded laud affords pleutv of fuel for domestic purposes, and an 
abundance of cypress for fencing more lasting than the famed cedar of 
Lebanon. 



THE PARISHES OF LOUISIANA. 125 



The public lands, within the parochial limits, are comparatively 
valueless. They are located in the unreclaimed marshes. Almost 
every square foot of soil that will bear the weight of a man and a 
mule has been entered. All the valuable lands are private property. 

Sugar plantations, stocked in cane and drained by means of ma- 
chinery, and bearing orange groves, command from $100 to $500 per 
square acre. 

The rice lands are freely rented at prices ranging from $7 50 to $10 
per square acre, or at the rate of a barrel and a half or two barrels of 
rough rice for every acre planted, payable after the crop has been har- 
vested. These lands are generally already ditched, levied and pre- 
pared for irrigation. Lands suitable for cultivation in cane, com or 
garden truck, thoroughly ditched and deeply drained by steam ma- 
chinery, command from $10 to $30 per acre, on annual leases. Probably 
longer leases could be obtained at lower figures. Various methods of 
share-working in the sugar field have been tried. That practised to 
the largest extent is for the landlord to furnish the tenant with lodg- 
ing, land, seed, teams and implements, in return for which the tenant 
is expected to deliver the cane produced to the landlord's mill or manu- 
factory at $2 50 per ton. Where small fanners cultivated cane 
entirely ajt their own expense, they sell it at the large manufactories 
at $4 and $5 per ton. 

The staple productions of this parish named in the order of their 
value, are sugar, rice, oranges, corn, and farm and garden vegetables. 

Cultivation of the orange has been carried on here since the organ- 
ization of the parochial government. In fact, it is claimed that some 
of the trees in the lower part of the parish are over a hundred years 
old. In the central and southern portion of the parish, on the west 
bank of the river, orange culture-has been almost uniformly a profit- 
able business. The most favored location for the tree is on the right 
bank of the river, from a point forty-three miles below New Orleans 
to a short distance above Fort Jackson. On the thirty miles of coast 
designated there is almost a continuous grove of orange trees. The 
largest solid grove is fifty-seven miles below New Orleans. Tins is 
100 acres in extent, and contains ten thousand trees. Another, forty- 
seven-miles below the city, is composed of over four thousand trees. 
The most productive groves are situated in "Boras settlement," along 
several miles of the river bank immediately above Fort Jackson. The 
annual return from full grown orange groves in the favored locations 
mentioned is from $100 to $200 per acre. The hundred acre grove 
yielded fruit last season which sold for $12,000. Smaller groves have 
often returned more than $200 per acre. 

Lands planted in bearing orange trees command almost fabulous 
prices. Some of them could not be purchased for $500 per square acre. 
A full bearing grove is not obtained till at least ten years after the 
seed is planted, unless grafted upon sour orange stocks, or from six, 
seven or eight years after the trees have been transplanted from the 
nursery j trees in the nursery are worth from ten to fifty cents each. 
During the first three or four years' growth of the young trees the 
groves may be planted in crops which are- not exhausting, though this 
is considered a doubtful policy. After the trees commence bearing, 
little care is required to keep the groves in order, though a degree of 
intelligence and skill is required in caring for them which few other 
fruit trees need. 



12G LOUISIANA, 



The most prolific fruit in Plaquemines parish, after the orange, is the 
fig, almost every variety of which grows here in profusion. Excellent 
peaches are also raised. 

The date, lemon, citron and banana, are raised in the lower part of 
the parish. These tropical fruits are, however, very uncertain, and 
those raised are kept for home use by the producers. 

ST. BERNARD 

begins at the lower limit of the parish of Orleans on the left bauk of 
the Mississippi river, and has a front of some fifteen miles on said 
river, extending to the upper line of the parish of Plaquemines ; it 
then follows the Bayou Terre-aux-Bceufs in an easterly direction to 
the Gulf of Mexico, a distance of about 100 miles. It also includes 
Proctorville on Lake Borgne and the ridge known as Lachinche lying 
on both sides of the La L'Outre, a small stream which flows into Lake 
Borgne. The parish was originally settled by immigrants from the 
Canary Islands about the year 1778. 

According to the census of 1880, the population is about 6,000, about 
one-half colored. 

The general topography of these parishes is quite similar, and the 
description of one applies to the other. 

The Mississippi river and Shell Beach Railroad, from New Orleans 
to Proctorville, affords ample transportation facilities, aud opens to 
the public one of the most beautiful seabathing resorts in the South. 
It is a great boon to New Orleans. By means of this road, vegetables 
may be placed in the New Orleans market. 

The soil of St. Bernard parish is as rich as any in the State, the area 
of arable land is about 25,000 square acres, and easily drained, being 
formed by ridges on both sides of thetTerre-aux-Bceufs and La L'Outre 
Bayous, sloping gentle towards the cypress swamp on either side. 
There are many small streams which flow into the numerous bays and 
lakes along the gulf coast, which serve as outlets to carry off surplus 
water. 

Along the Mississippi river and small water courses, the surface is a 
rich sandy soil, towards the cypress swamp the soil is rich clay loam. 

The crops at present raised are sugar cane, corn, rice, oranges and 
some cotton, on the Bayou La L'Outre, especially the sea island, which 
grows luxuriantly and yields generally from one to one and a half 
bales. All kinds of vegetables are also raised in large quantities for 
the New Orleans market. 

The largest portion of that part of the pnrish lying on the Terre- 
aux-Bceufs and La L'Outre is cut up into small farms, where vegeta- 
bles are raised. There are twenty sugar plantations in the parish. 

RAILROADS AND IMMIGRATION. 

The commercial value of every thing depends upon its availibility — 
upon the power it possesses of being easily converted into commodities 
not enjoyed by its holder. Gold, in the hands of a solitary castaway 
upon a. desert island, becomes dross, and the most fertile lands in the 
world, when inaccessible to markets, become of little more value than 
the adjacent swamps. To their possessor they contribute none of its 
luxuries, and with little stimulant to realize from his labor more than 
a scanty subsistence. 



THE PARISHES OF LOUISIANA. 127 



The question must have arisen in the mind of even the most casual 
reader of the foregoing pages, if these statements are true, why is it 
that one of the oldest and most fertile States in the Union — a State 
possessing a climate unsurpassed for salubrity, and one also having a 
commercial metropolis that thirty years ago was the rival of New 
York — should, at this late date, be inviting the immigrant to settle 
within its borders, and at the same time offering to him inducements 
both in the price of its lands and every substantial comfort of life that 
is unknown in the rigorous and inclement Northwest? 

Capitalists seeking investment for their money have become con- 
vinced that no State in the Union presented so many and so varied at- 
tractions to the husbandman as Louisiana ; that its soil was deep, rich 
and easily cultivated ; that its climate, in point of healthfuhiess, has 
no equal on the continent ; that the product of its soil could never be 
a glut in any market, because the demand for them was wide as the 
bounds of civilization, and that it was capable of sustaining a popula- 
tion ten times greater than it now possesses. Notwithstanding all 
these positive advantages, the tide of immigration has continued, 
mainly in an unbroken current, to the northern territories and chiefly 
to those regions in Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Montana where, 
owing to the severity of the climate, the farmer is compelled to rely 
mainlv for his accumulations upon two or three of the most hardy ce- 
reals. The reason for this is that the bleak northern region was sup- 
plied with a constant, safe, cheap and rapid means of transit to the 
distributing points of the country, while Louisiana depended upon a 
slow and, at some seasons of the year, a precarious means of trans- 
porting the products of the soil to market. 

Capitalists recognizing the situation, have invested millions of dol- 
lars in railroads in this State. Their lines are running out of New Or- 
leans in every direction. 

The Shell Beach railroad runs south-east through the cane fields and 
orange groves to the salt surf resort on Lake Borgne. 

Tne Louisville and Nashville goes east, through the delightful vil- 
lages along the coast of Mississippi sound. The New Orleans and 
Northeastern strikes boldly across Lake Pontchartrain to the norcheast 
into the great forests toward Meridian. 

The Great Jackson railroad aims for the North star, on its way 
through the long leaf pines of East Louisiana. The Mississippi valley 
passes along the east bank of the Mississippi river until it reaches 
Baton Rouge, where it runs due north. . 

, Morgan's railroad goes west through the Tecfle country, "the Eden 
of Louisiana," and on through the prairies into Texas. The New Or- 
leans Pacific passes along the west bank of the Mississippi to Baton 
i (luge and thence to the northwest of the State into Texas. 

These railroads have opened to commerce millions of acres of mag- 
niticent land. Thriving villages have sprung up along their lines and 
made local markets for agricultural products. 

New Orleans is the great cotton market of the world and is already 
diverting a large portion of Western grain from the Eastern cities. 

The New Orleans and Pacific Railroad runs from New Orleans north- 
westerly for more than three hundred miles through the Red river and 
Mississippi Valleys, and traverses the parishes of Caddo, De Soto, 
Natchitoches, Rapides, Avoyelles, West Baton Rouge, Iberville, Pointe 
Coupee, St. James, St. Charles. Upon its line are some of the most 



128 LOUISIANA. 



important towns in the State west of Red river, and among such are 
Shreveport, Mansfield, Alexandria, Plaqueinine, Donaldsonville and 
others of lesser note. 

Whatever adds to the commercial importance of New Orleans, is a 
direct benefit to the agriculturists of the State of Louisiana, for the 
greater its importance the more it will be sought by foreign traders, 
and the more reliable it becomes as a market. The maintenance of 
permanent deep water at the mouth of the river, assures to the city an 
importance that no gulf port enjoys, or can rival. The New Orleans 
Pacific Railway gives to Arkansas, northern Louisiana, northern Texas 
and in fact the whole cotton belt west of the Red river, the shortest 
possible routes to tide water, and the cotton, grain and tobacco, that 
has heretofore been compelled to seek an outlet, via St. Louis, at New 
York, Baltimore or Philadelphia, will, by this line, be saved the ex 
pense of transportation by rail for nearly 1,200 miles to reach tide 
water. The producer pays the cost of transportation always, and the 
cotton-grower who sends his bales by the longer route, receives just 
so much less for his product, as it costs him to transport it to market. 
Cotton grown in northern Texas brings the same price in New Orleans 
and no more, as cotton grown in southern Louisiana, but the producer 
nearest to market, makes as additional profit, the difference in freight- 
age between the longer and shorter distance. This, of itself, is an item, 
which is small where taken in isolated cases, but in the aggregate and 
computed year after year, becomes an enormous sum. It is an item 
fully worth estimating in selecting a spot both for a home and to pros- 
ecute the business of agriculture to the best advantage. 
, The settler upon the line of the New Orleans Pacific Railway will 
always have the choice of two routes to market. It is an old adage, 
that competition is the life of trade, and in no department of business 
does it apply with more force, than to that of the common carrier. It 
is an axiom, that the cheaper route always fixes the price for the con- 
veyance of freight. Take the rates of freight on grain between Chicago 
and New York, and they are just one-third less in the summer, when 
the lakes and canals are open, than in the winter when they are closed, 
and the rule applies with equal force in the winter as between the 
different lines of roads and as in the summer between the roads and 
boats. The winter rates are always based upon the shortest route, and 
longest lines carry for the same rates as the shortest. The advantage 
of Southern over Northern water routes is that they are always open, 
and no danger can exist that colds or frosts will ever close the Red and 
lower Mississippi rivers, so as to give to any railroad the monopoly of 
the carrying trade for any portion of the year; and the history of trans- 
portation routes iu Europe, as well as in this country, shows that when 
railroads and watercourses are in competition the rates of the cheaper 
system always maintain. 

The advantages which these two competitions offer to the emigrant 
are of vast moment, and as between going to a region thus amply pro- 
vided with the meaus of transportation iu preference to settling in one 
where only one system, and that usually a new and imperfect one, is 
in vogue, it would seem that common foresight and prudence would, 
otherthings being equal, select the former. 

According to the U. S. Census of 1880, the farms of the Western 
States produced crops, the gross value of which was equal to 10 per 
cent of their value, while farms in Louisiana produced crops, the gross 



TEE PARISHES OF LOUISIANA. 129 



value of which amounted to 72 per cent of the value of the lands upon 
which they grow. 

This report shows, that the value of products per acre in Louisiana, 
is greater than in any other State in the Union. 

The territory lying along the lines of railroads in Louisiana offers to 
the settler the advantage of a perfect social system, which is of itself 
the growth of years and the result of vast expenditures of money. In 
Louisiana, laws are old, Avell settled and defined by a long line of judi- 
cial decisions, as thorough as in any of the Northern or Eastern States; 
an educational system is in force that has been tried for years, and has 
become as nearly perfect as that of any State in the Union; school- 
houses are built, and the advantages of higher education are ample in 
all of the larger places in the State; roads are laid out and worked, and 
the means of communication between districts are equaled only in the 
older and richer States; churches of all denominations are everywhere 
to be seen ; and nothing is left to the immigrant but to locate his land 
and begin his labors in a region abundantly supplied with all the essen- 
tials of cultivated and refined life. What a contrast is such a com- 
mencement with the taking of a homestead in one of the Northern ter- 
ritories, where nothing is to be seen but a broad expanse of barren 
prairie, without a school-house or village in sight, without roads, with- 
out settled and defined laws for the protection of person or property ! 
In such a case, the settler is as isolated as Crusoe on his island. He is 
without neighbors or associates, and his family must be reared without 
schools and newspapers, and among associates who have sought the 
frontier because land was cheap. There is, in fact, no other induce- 
ment for the immigrant to seek such a home. However congenial such 
an isolated existence may have been to one like Daniel Boone, who 
always moved further into the wilderness, "where neighbors were 
within twenty miles of his cabin," it is questionable whether a man 
has the moral right to so isolate his family that they are. compelled to 
forego all social pleasures and live deprived not only of moral and re- 
ligious instruction, but of that social intercourse which is demanded by 
man's own nature and constitutes the highest enjoyment of life. 
9 



TO TJS/LJSATGrttJ±2<T 1 T&. 



The intelligent immigrant will naturally ask : " Why have 
we never heard before of the wonderful climate, soil and pro- 
ductions of Louisiana?" 

The answer is plain. Under the old political system, immi- 
gration was not wanted, and the advantages of the State were 
not advertised. Until the establishment of the Immigration 
Bureau, there was no organized effort to induce immigrants to 
come to Louisiana. There have never been glowing advertise- 
ments by railroads and land companies, for the reason that they 
don't own the public lands in this State. 

Those immigrants who have come to the State have acted 
upon information obtained from general reading, friends .living 
here or travelers. We have already nearly G0,000 foreign born 
citizens in the State. They have found a country in all respects 
equal to their anticipations, and have set up their household 
gods in free Louisiana. They think the natural advantages 
here are sufficient for those who seek new homes, for they have 
seen the tide of immigration flowing to the northwest until it 
is rolling back from " the blizzard," the dry line and alkaline 
deserts. They have found that the advantages of Louisiana 
are unknown to the world, and even to the people of the United 
States. To furnish the desired information, the State Bureau 
of Immigration has published this book, and the statements 
herein will be found substantially correct. The Bureau owns 
no lands for sale, and has no inducement to mislead or deceive. 
It is composed of State officers who seek to till the vacant lands 
in the State with honest and industrious people, who will 
become contented and prosperous citizens, and thus add to the 
wealth of the State. One disapp inted settler could do much 
toward discouraging immigration. Recognizing this fact, we 



TO IMMIGRANTS. 131 



have endeavored in these pages to repress the gorgeous coloring 
of tropical beauty which abounds in Louisiana, that anticipa- 
tion of the settler may fall short of realization. We believe it 
to be to the interest of the many who desire to change their 
homes to learn of the superior advantages which our State 
affords, and we extend an earnest and cordial invitation to all 
good people to come. 

The foreigners already here have learned that the State em- 
braces more elements of wealth than any other section, and 
they invite their brethren of the old world to come. Progress is 
the watchword of the South. Capital is flowing in from the 
North. Line after line of railway is laid out and constructed, 
and others are projected. Along their lines, towns and villages 
spring up, new farms are opened and old fields rehabilitated. 
Investments double in a short time. The farmer who enters a 
homestead at once enhances the value of lauds in the neighbor- 
hood ; others follow and values increase. 

A new and bright future is dawning upon this fair land, so 
wonderfully endowed by Providence. 

No other portion of the country shows such active progress — 
the world must have our agricultural products, and pays gold 
for them in our own markets. Thus it is that the humble home- 
stead, managed by the industrious farmer, soon becomes a tine 
estate. The toiling thousands of the more populous States are 
invited to come to Louisiana, where the public domain will 
afford them free homesteads upon which they may establish 
themselves and secure a competence. The people of the South 
are generous and hospitable, and will give a hearty and cheerful 
welcome to all worthy immigrants. Those arriving in New 
Orleans should go at once to the office of the Commissioner of 
Immigration. The Commissioner will aid and direct them in 
obtaining work or homesteads, or in renting or buying land. 
No fee is charged the immigrant for any aid or advice given by 



the Bureau of Immigration. 



132 LOUISIANA. 



TWO PICTURES FOR THE FARMER. 
SPRINGTIME IN THE NORTHWEST. 

[From the Dubuque, (Iowa) Herald.] 

Wisner, Neb., March 10, 1881. 

How shall I write of this timberless plain? The past summer 
was one of sunshine. The present winter has been one of 
tempest. 

Climate makes a country rich and prosperous, or it may make 
it a waste. The weather and climate are one. Men speak of 
the weather just in proportion as they love nature. A storm in 
the great Red river valley is telegraphed to all sections of the 
country. A heavy frost in Kentucky is known the next day in 
all parts of the world. The tobacco crop may have been 
threatened. The great plain prairie country, west of the Mis- 
souri, is subject to weather of violence, and in obedience to law. 

The "blizzard" is a fact, a terrible, perilous fact. Its merci- 
less fury has not been confined to Nebraska alone this winter, 
but the entire northwest has felt its killing, devastating touch. 
As I write human life is safe only within doors. During the 
blizzard of February 12, a near neighbor started for his corral 
in midafternoon ; at midnight he found himself knocking at the 
door of a distant dugout, still alive, but where he had wandered 
or been driven by the storm he could not tell. It was the 14th 
instant before the fury of the storm so abated as to allow him 
to return to his home, to find one half of his stock stiff in death. 
There must be a compensation somewhere that induces men to 
brave such danger. 

The government gives a man a home for planting a few trees; 
the State of Nebraska exempts property from taxation to en- 
courage forestry. You who dwell in cities and towns know 
nothing of the wonderful power exerted by the winds upon the 
great plains. The chemist tells us that hot water under pressure 
is the most powerful of known solvents; so a snow storm, driven 
by a fierce wind which has gathered mountains in its flight of 
hundreds of miles across a treeless plain, becomes a blizzard 
before which humau life is as a toy in the hands of an athlete. 



TO IMMIGRANTS. 133 



Nebraska is inferior to Iowa in all tilings to go to make up an 
agricultural State. Your certain rainfall, timber and coal are 
all in all to a new State. Strange as it may appear, the Agri- 
cultural Department Report for 1878, places Nebraska in the 
front rank as a corn-producing State. John Phoenix's idea of 
happiness may be realized here — 

"Corn in the big crib, money in the pocket, 
Baby in the cradle, and a pretty wife to rock it." 

Western Nebraska, like Western Kansas, may produce a crop 
once in a dozen years, and it may not — the chances are too much 
in favor of the blank for a man to risk even his pocket change 
in the venture. The great and growing interest here is the 
grazing business. Grass is abundant, water fairly plenty in 
running streams, and easily obtained by digging, and everything 
seems to tavor the future of that business, except the winter 
and the blizzard. The present winter has demonstrated the 
more than folly of trying to winter stock in this section outside 
of warm sheds or barns. Go with me on a day's drive among 
my neighbors. I can point out to you the carcasses of cattle, 
sheep and hogs enough to have built a barn for every stock 
raiser in the country. The interested party who represents that 
stock requires less protection here than in Iowa is a falsifier, and 
"the truth is not in him." Be not misled, you who think of 
coming to Nebraska to engage in the stock business. Come 
with your eyes open, and remember first that cattle require as 
much care and attention here as in Northern Iowa or Minnesota. 
The feeding season is as long, the winter more severe, and the 
weather fully as cold. A hundred miles west from here you 
reach the eastern boundary of the range where cattle sometimes 
winter on buffalo grass. The present winter has been a wasting 
exception. Over all that vast range in Nebraska, Dakota, Col- 
orado, Wyoming and Montana, the grass is under snow and 
sleet so deep that no bovine can reach it. He who counted last 
November "the cattle on a thousand hills as his," is shorn of his 
earthly possessions. The plains and canyons are 
Rich in ihe bodies of the slain. 

The average loss attending this growing interest, always large 
has never before taken capital, stock, increase and all. As a. 



134 LOUISIANA. 



result, cattle must rule high for a few years to come. During 
the mouth of January the mercury touched 40° below zero, and 
once in February it reached 30° below. The cold has been 
steady and has held unbroken sway. 

The above description, taken from a Western paper, is a sad 
but true picture of this Eldorado of the West — a country ex- 
tolled to the skies by interested persons and advertised through- 
out Europe and America as " a laud flowing with milk and 
honey." 

It is truly stated that this winter was unusually severe, and 
there was much suffering throughout the Northwest, attended 
with great loss of live stock, and, in some instances, of human 
life. Transportation was stopped, all trains having been block- 
aded week after week by terrific snow storms. This condition 
of things continued until the last of March, but trains are liable 
to be "blockaded" in any ordinary midwinter. 

SPRINGTIME IN LOUISIANA. 

During the time that the people of the West were suffering 
the hardships incident to a community "snowed in," the farmers 
of Louisiana were plowing their corn and planting cotton, and 
cutting winter grass "kuee high," for their work animals, while 
their flocks and herds fed abundantly upon the luxuriant wild 
grasses which cover prairie, hillside and common. 

At this time in Louisiana, Nature has awakened from her 
light winter's slumber, and Spring has spread her bridal gar- 
ments over the earth. The orange trees are white with blos- 
soms, which blend their perfume with the tea olive, magnolia 
fruscata, yellow jessamin and roses, and other sweet shrubs, 
vines and thousands of flowers. The birds have, commenced 
housekeeping, and sing glad songs in harmony with all animate 
creation, to welcome the springtime to this lovely land. 

These pictures are truthfully drawn. Our sketch is finished, 
and in behalf of the good citizens of our State we extend an 
earnest invitation to the people of all nations and creeds to 
come to Louisiana and plant a vine and fig-tree, under whose 
shade, they may in coming years sit down and view the good 
things that have grown up, out of the fatness of the earth, to 
make them contented and happy. 



HOMES IN LOUISIANA. 



HOMESTEADS FOR IMMIGRANTS. 



LARGE TRACTS OF LAND FOR COLONIES. 

PINE, CYPRESS AND HARDWOOD TIMBER 

AND PRAIRIE LANDS, SUGAR, COTTON 

AND RICE PLANTATIONS, FRUIT 

FARMS, TRUCK FARMS, SHEEP 

RANCHES. 



MINERAL LANDS, COAL, IRON, MARBLE, 
SALT AND SULPHUR. 



COAST MARSH AND RECLAIMED LANDS. 



Owners have placed lists of all kinds of lands for sale in the 
State, in my office, with prices and description for the informa- 
tion and inspection of immigrants and capitalists. I have en- 
deavored to obtain maps and descriptions of every tract of land 
for sale, in every parish in the State. Purchasers are invited 
to call and examine them. I hope by this means to bring the 
buyer and seller together, to their mutual advantage, and to 
dispose of millions of acres of valuable lands in the State, 
which are dead capital in the hands of present owners for the 
want ot money to develop them. 

WILLIAM H. HARRIS, 

Commissioner of Immigration, 

110 Gravier street, N. O. 



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